Webb 'appreciates' evaluation

The schools chief said her personal goal is to move academics forward.
By HAROLD GWIN
VINDICATOR EDUCATION WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- City schools Superintendent Dr. Wendy Webb said that she's pleased with the results of her first performance evaluation by the school board but that she thinks she needs to work harder.
"I appreciate the feedback," Webb said after the board's release of its evaluation, which gave her an overall rating of 6.9 on a scale on 1 to 9, with 9 being the highest possible score.
Still, Webb said the evaluation document used by the board didn't sufficiently address academic issues.
Board President Jacqueline Taylor apparently felt the same way. She cast the lone vote against the evaluation instrument when it was adopted by the board in October, saying that she felt it didn't focus enough on teaching and learning.
Focus on academics
Webb said her own self-evaluation focuses on the need to move academics forward and getting kids back on the learning track.
The various programming changes she implemented in the district at the beginning of the school year were all tied to that purpose, she said.
The bottom line is learning, she said, adding that Youngstown, currently rated by the state as being in academic emergency, needs to again become a "school system with a culture of learning."
Webb said she has implemented changes to reduce the amount of bureaucracy and expedite the promotion of academics.
The goal is to provide leadership that leads kids to education, she said, noting that didn't come out in the tool used in the evaluation process.
The board gave her its lowest ratings in the category of business and finance, cautioning that she must keep an eye on the district's questionable future financial situation.
Webb acknowledged that it is her job to be fiscally responsible, but stressed that her focus is on academics. The district must be kept out of fiscal emergency, but it can be very difficult to find the balance between pushing for good academic programs while trying to reduce operating costs, she said.
Webb was given a three-year contract when she was appointed superintendent in August 2004. This was her first board evaluation.
gwin@vindy.com