Postions
Stepping Stones and Stumbling Blocks
The only real mistake is the one from which we learn nothing. 
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I grew up in Dothan, Alabama. I spent a lot of time with my paternal grandparents. They played a big part in raising me. Two values I hold dear go back to them: integrity and transparency.
My grandfather believed we should mean what we say and say what we mean. Whether in his work as a school custodian or in his service as a country preacher, my granddaddy didn't mince words. My grandmother took care of children everywhere from private homes and to a local child care center. She was a school custodian, too. She was transparent and “kept it 100” long before today's generation made it a popular catchphrase. My campaign for school board is about integrity and transparency. It isn't about being perfect. I've spent 25 years looking at schools and districts as systems. I've worked hard to understand the governance of schools and districts from a policy perspective. I'm not always right and I'm not perfect. I've made some mistakes along the way. It’s important to learn from our mistakes and missteps. It’s important to show children that we–as adults live and learn–and we adults are doing what we ask of them. In the end, it's about listening and making better decisions each time. Tony Burks Atlanta Board of Education District 2 Candidate |
Keeping it 100
Tony's been asked a lot of questions since deciding to run.
We're posting many of these questions and his responses on this page.
We include links to resources from others along with some of his writings about educational matters.
The Committee to Elect Dr. Tony Burks
Atlanta Board of Education District 2
We're posting many of these questions and his responses on this page.
We include links to resources from others along with some of his writings about educational matters.
The Committee to Elect Dr. Tony Burks
Atlanta Board of Education District 2
Why ARE YOU running for THE Atlanta Board OF EDUCATION, DISTRICT 2?
I’m running because I care about the students of the Atlanta Public Schools. I believe I have something to offer students and community in the City of Atlanta, specifically District 2. I have worked in education across the country since 1993. I worked in APS from 2012 to 2015. I’ve led other educators as a college instructor, a mentor, and an area superintendent twice.
I started teaching when I was 22. I became an elementary school principal at the age of 27. I’ve been a classroom teacher, an elementary school principal, and a high school principal twice. I’ve served schools and districts in roles from Magnet Director to School Transformation Coach, from Principal Mentor to Executive Director of Small School Innovation, and from School Improvement Officer to Area Superintendent. I am the founding principal of The Early College at Guilford, North Carolina’s first early college high school and one of the first such schools of its type in the world.
Over the last 25 years, I’ve learned from some of the best educators, board members, and educational leaders around. I’ve helped thousands of children and their families grow and learn. I’ve also learned lots from my students. It is a combination of my personal and educational experiences as well as the policy and governance skills I have developed that would allow me to work with board members, the superintendent, and the community to make things better for our students. Together we will do great things for our children and the Atlanta Public Schools.
I started teaching when I was 22. I became an elementary school principal at the age of 27. I’ve been a classroom teacher, an elementary school principal, and a high school principal twice. I’ve served schools and districts in roles from Magnet Director to School Transformation Coach, from Principal Mentor to Executive Director of Small School Innovation, and from School Improvement Officer to Area Superintendent. I am the founding principal of The Early College at Guilford, North Carolina’s first early college high school and one of the first such schools of its type in the world.
Over the last 25 years, I’ve learned from some of the best educators, board members, and educational leaders around. I’ve helped thousands of children and their families grow and learn. I’ve also learned lots from my students. It is a combination of my personal and educational experiences as well as the policy and governance skills I have developed that would allow me to work with board members, the superintendent, and the community to make things better for our students. Together we will do great things for our children and the Atlanta Public Schools.
What makes YOU a STRONG candidate FOR SCHOOL BOARD?
Life has a way of changing your plans. I always knew I would be working with a board of education. I just assumed I would be in the role of a superintendent which had been a lifelong goal.
After a series of life changes, I reflected and asked myself “How can I continue to serve the children of Atlanta and use the skills, training, and educational experience I have accumulated over the years to benefit my community?” This led me to a decision to run for the Atlanta Board of Education District 2 seat.
I am THE choice for the Atlanta Board of Education District 2 seat because I bring to the table actual educational experience from the classroom to administration. I bring formal training in policy and governance. I have a unique perspective that will guide the way I work with fellow board members, the superintendent, and the community to make things better for our students.
I am the only candidate with a 25-year career in education, a career that is defined by what Dr. John Robert Browne defines as “culturally courageous leadership” in support of today’s learners as leaders and innovators.
After a series of life changes, I reflected and asked myself “How can I continue to serve the children of Atlanta and use the skills, training, and educational experience I have accumulated over the years to benefit my community?” This led me to a decision to run for the Atlanta Board of Education District 2 seat.
I am THE choice for the Atlanta Board of Education District 2 seat because I bring to the table actual educational experience from the classroom to administration. I bring formal training in policy and governance. I have a unique perspective that will guide the way I work with fellow board members, the superintendent, and the community to make things better for our students.
I am the only candidate with a 25-year career in education, a career that is defined by what Dr. John Robert Browne defines as “culturally courageous leadership” in support of today’s learners as leaders and innovators.
What's BIGGEST CHALLENGE OF Atlanta Public Schools AND WHAT WILL YOU DO ABOUT IT?
Our district's biggest challenge is equity. We operate in a system that is still a tale of two school districts: The Haves and the Have Nots.
Equity is just a big word for making sure students and schools get what they need to be successful. Fairness and inclusion are key parts of equity.
Equity doesn’t mean equal. For example, being equal would be giving everyone shoes to wear and those shoes would be “one-size-fits-all”. Equity would be giving everyone shoes to wear and those shoes would fit each person (so my shoes would be Size 14 and yours might be a Size 10).
The whole point of equity is to remove roadblocks and barriers so our children succeed.
I would address equity as a two-fold challenge that is financial and educational.
Equity is just a big word for making sure students and schools get what they need to be successful. Fairness and inclusion are key parts of equity.
Equity doesn’t mean equal. For example, being equal would be giving everyone shoes to wear and those shoes would be “one-size-fits-all”. Equity would be giving everyone shoes to wear and those shoes would fit each person (so my shoes would be Size 14 and yours might be a Size 10).
The whole point of equity is to remove roadblocks and barriers so our children succeed.
I would address equity as a two-fold challenge that is financial and educational.
- To address equity from a financial perspective: It is no secret that schools and districts operate in permanent financial whitewater with ongoing challenges and concerns. The board is responsible for developing overall policies to support the superintendent in creating and monitoring a comprehensive district budget. The board also serves as steward of the district’s budget and expenses. I am interested in a holistic fiscal management process to support near- and long-term goals (growth and needs) that includes a budget stabilization plan, a student-friendly budget book, engaged GO Teams that inform school-based spending, and an ongoing budget development and monitoring process. I would like to see each school's budget, as well as the district’s budget, posted in a user-friendly, interactive format on school and district websites.
- To address equity from an educational perspective: If APS is truly about continuous improvement, it is important that the Board of Education–as a governance body–removes barriers and roadblocks in order to create conditions for those at schools to do their best work with students. The board can work to ensure administrators, teachers, support specialists, and other staff members provide the support each student needs to be academically and socially successful. Academic and Social support should be available to all students regardless of whether their parents request additional support or whether state and federal policies (e.g., Title I, IEPs, 504 plans) obligate the school to provide supplemental services. The district policies should enable the schools to provide supports that are flexible, timely, and responsive to the intensity, length, and manner of support each student needs to succeed. The district should also commit to supporting its human capital through comprehensive professional-development opportunities and job-embedded professional learning for all staff.
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"I think this image really should state EQUITY instead of equality. I'd also use other modes of moving up...for example, an elevator, a swing, a rope, boxes." – Tony Burks
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Images from CompetencyWorks
What are YOUR top three PRIORITIES?
My top three priorities are children, learning, and community.
- CHILDREN (SAFETY). James Baldwin was right, "These are all our children; we will benefit by or pay for what they become." I want to focus on the overall academic, social, physical, and personal wellness of students and their families to help our students achieve their dreams.
- LEARNING (EXCELLENCE). I want to focus on creating conditions that help educators help students. Again, when we remove roadblocks and barriers, our children succeed. We must continue trying innovative things to help our students. Likewise, we also must simply do the right things and do the right things well to help our students achieve excellence.
- COMMUNITY (ENGAGEMENT). I know that I can't do this work alone. In fact, none of us–not teachers and principals, parents and grandparents, the superintendent and her staff–can do this alone. It'll take us working together as an effective team. When we are visible and transparent, we can connect families to help our students be their best. Public education–at its heart–is about community. I know from my work in Tennessee, California, and North Carolina that community matters. We can have a great idea; however, if it isn't connected to the community, it won't be successful and it won't last. In the end, schools succeed when the community is informed, involved and engaged.
WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ABOUT INNOVATION AND PUBLIC CHARTER SCHOOLS?
Innovation can be found, nurtured, and sustained in public education from traditional neighborhood schools to public charter schools. A charter school designation does not automatically translate to innovation and excellence for the students we serve, and a neighborhood school is not automatically "low performing" because of its location. We must continue trying innovative things to help our students in all educational settings. Likewise, we also must simply do the right things well to help our students achieve excellence.
One key goal innovation is actually incubation. The flexibility given to schools is meant to encourage a deeper exploration of innovative practices so that they can be replicated at other schools. For example, in one district where I served, our innovation efforts were designed to increase the number of college-ready high school graduates, particularly among underserved and underrepresented populations, and to improve students’ post-secondary options, whether college, technical training, or the world of work. We did not rely solely on standardized test results to measure the progress of our students. We also looked at the results of interviews, school visits, and surveys which consistently indicated that students felt recognized as important members of their school communities and they would not choose to transfer to a comprehensive high school. The schools demonstrated significant improvements in school culture and climate and made notable progress in developing relationships, personalizing education, and emphasizing “relevance” in instruction.
My expectation for innovation can be summarized as ensuring all schools–not just charters or themed schools–have freedom and flexibility, challenge and choice coupled with strong coaching, ongoing professional development, and face-to-face support using data as a flashlight to illuminate what works and what does not work. It's about continuous improvement.
School choice should reflect that children need different academic settings. There isn't a one size fits all approach. The district should have a goal of providing educational equity across the district. So no matter what school in the district a child attends, that child is receiving a high quality education.
I would really like school choice to be about a child attending a school that has something that strikes their interests and learning style as opposed to a child leaving because the school in their neighborhood is a low achieving school.
One key goal innovation is actually incubation. The flexibility given to schools is meant to encourage a deeper exploration of innovative practices so that they can be replicated at other schools. For example, in one district where I served, our innovation efforts were designed to increase the number of college-ready high school graduates, particularly among underserved and underrepresented populations, and to improve students’ post-secondary options, whether college, technical training, or the world of work. We did not rely solely on standardized test results to measure the progress of our students. We also looked at the results of interviews, school visits, and surveys which consistently indicated that students felt recognized as important members of their school communities and they would not choose to transfer to a comprehensive high school. The schools demonstrated significant improvements in school culture and climate and made notable progress in developing relationships, personalizing education, and emphasizing “relevance” in instruction.
My expectation for innovation can be summarized as ensuring all schools–not just charters or themed schools–have freedom and flexibility, challenge and choice coupled with strong coaching, ongoing professional development, and face-to-face support using data as a flashlight to illuminate what works and what does not work. It's about continuous improvement.
School choice should reflect that children need different academic settings. There isn't a one size fits all approach. The district should have a goal of providing educational equity across the district. So no matter what school in the district a child attends, that child is receiving a high quality education.
I would really like school choice to be about a child attending a school that has something that strikes their interests and learning style as opposed to a child leaving because the school in their neighborhood is a low achieving school.
WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT PLANS IN EDUCATION?
Over my 25-year career in education, I’ve learned and used various tools to support staff in improving their practice. I’ve had an alphabet soup of evaluation and improvement tools from PIP, PDP, TKES, LKES, FEPG. The bottom line for each set of tools is that they are meant to encourage continuous improvement.
Whether working as a teacher at two independent schools, joining the NEA as a 27-year-old elementary school principal, or serving as an Association Representative with the Guilford County Association of Educators, I’ve partnered with teachers to create working environments that ensured respect on the job, flexibility to meet the needs of family and work, and a strong voice about improvement and representation.
Just to be clear, aside from the children of our school district, the next most important asset is our workforce. It is essential that the workforce have embedded learning, time to learn, and time to assess effectiveness.
I know how a Professional Development Plan (PDP) can be misused. Most PDPs have between 2 and 5 goals or action items. The last time I worked in a school district, my supervisor put me on a PDP three weeks before his first official visit to my school (the visit was March 23 of that school year). My school team and I worked on all 25 items in March and April. I gave my supervisor over 1000 pages of paperwork showing what we’d accomplished in less than two months working on my PDP. When it was all said and done, I didn’t get a contract to continue working as an administrator. This experience underscored why I’ve worked hard to to ensure staff are evaluated fairly, and–if improvement was needed–why I’ve worked knee-to-knee and shoulder-to-shoulder to help staff members improve.
Whether working as a teacher at two independent schools, joining the NEA as a 27-year-old elementary school principal, or serving as an Association Representative with the Guilford County Association of Educators, I’ve partnered with teachers to create working environments that ensured respect on the job, flexibility to meet the needs of family and work, and a strong voice about improvement and representation.
Just to be clear, aside from the children of our school district, the next most important asset is our workforce. It is essential that the workforce have embedded learning, time to learn, and time to assess effectiveness.
I know how a Professional Development Plan (PDP) can be misused. Most PDPs have between 2 and 5 goals or action items. The last time I worked in a school district, my supervisor put me on a PDP three weeks before his first official visit to my school (the visit was March 23 of that school year). My school team and I worked on all 25 items in March and April. I gave my supervisor over 1000 pages of paperwork showing what we’d accomplished in less than two months working on my PDP. When it was all said and done, I didn’t get a contract to continue working as an administrator. This experience underscored why I’ve worked hard to to ensure staff are evaluated fairly, and–if improvement was needed–why I’ve worked knee-to-knee and shoulder-to-shoulder to help staff members improve.
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WHAT ARE YOUR tHOUGHTS ABOUT VOCATIONAL/CAREER TECHNICAL EDUCATION?
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Don't ever discount the power of Career and Technical (aka vocational) education!
As a high school student in Dothan, Alabama, I stopped taking honors courses my junior year and enrolled our local vocational center taking a class for half of the day. My counselor was stunned and couldn't figure out why I wanted to take vocational courses. The assumption was my "gifted and talented"-ness meant I could not reasonably choose to do something with my hands or something considered to be non-academic. Also, at the time, the schedule was such that if I chose anything vocational, I could not participate in the limited gifted options they had (and I had the challenge of testing well, asking "too many" questions, and not always making "good" grades). I could not get into my first choice course (culinary arts with the incomparable Chef Lamar Black) so I went with my second choice: Graphic Communications. I learned the then emerging technology of computer design as well as how to operate a Heidelberg printing press. Year after year, I see so many times when I draw upon the lessons I learned in the course. This platinum record and my school board campaign images are a few of the many things I've created because of what I learned at DVC (the Dothan Vocational Center; now the Dothan Technology Center). We are diverse and are fully capable of the fullness of learning. Vocational education is for all students of all backgrounds. Let's get back to an oldie and a goodie. |
What’s your dissertation about?
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When worked on my dissertation, I took a closer look at the student court of a public high school. I studied student leadership development and pro-social peer pressure.
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HOW DID MOREHOUSE INFLUENCE YOUR DECISION TO RUN FOR SCHOOL BOARD?
I've known and cared about the Atlanta Public Schools since my college days in the late 80s.
When I entered Morehouse College as a first year student, I was told stories about Morehouse Men like Martin Luther King Jr, Maynard Jackson, Michael Lomax, Edwin Moses, Howard Thurman, Samuel Jackson, Louis Sullivan, David Satcher, and Spike Lee. We were encouraged to graduate and enter the world as difference makers.
I worked on campus as a resident assistant and mostly volunteered on campus with various student organizations. When I decided to volunteer off-campus, I volunteered at APS's Oglethorpe Elementary School which was once a laboratory school for Atlanta University.
We all learned about Dr. Benjamin Elijah Mays and his love for the Atlanta Public Schools. Dr. Mays went on to serve as president of the Atlanta Board of Education after retiring as president of Morehouse College.
Though not a Morehouse Man himself, Dr. May's life became a blueprint for us as students and graduates of the college. Dr. Mays was clear in his expectation of all Morehouse Men, "You have the ability, now apply yourself."
I have the ability; I'm ready to apply myself as your Board Member!
When I entered Morehouse College as a first year student, I was told stories about Morehouse Men like Martin Luther King Jr, Maynard Jackson, Michael Lomax, Edwin Moses, Howard Thurman, Samuel Jackson, Louis Sullivan, David Satcher, and Spike Lee. We were encouraged to graduate and enter the world as difference makers.
I worked on campus as a resident assistant and mostly volunteered on campus with various student organizations. When I decided to volunteer off-campus, I volunteered at APS's Oglethorpe Elementary School which was once a laboratory school for Atlanta University.
We all learned about Dr. Benjamin Elijah Mays and his love for the Atlanta Public Schools. Dr. Mays went on to serve as president of the Atlanta Board of Education after retiring as president of Morehouse College.
Though not a Morehouse Man himself, Dr. May's life became a blueprint for us as students and graduates of the college. Dr. Mays was clear in his expectation of all Morehouse Men, "You have the ability, now apply yourself."
I have the ability; I'm ready to apply myself as your Board Member!
