The City of Seattle, Washington is considering following the model of Boston and some other cities across the United States in granting the Mayor control of appointees to the city's School Committee. This past Monday, The Seattle Times wrote about Seattle Mayor's Greg Nickels efforts and looked back to Boston as the first city to do this, in the early 1990s. Councillor Tobin commented on Boston's results in the piece.

Boston City Councilor John Tobin, who leads the council's Education Committee, said he often gets calls from frustrated parents who can't contact School Board members.

"There's little room for debate and discussion" with the appointed board, he said. "I'd like to broaden it so there's more neighborhood representation."

Councillor Tobin has repeatedly sponsored efforts to increase the visibility and interaction of the public with the Boston School Committee, including resolutions unanimously passed by the City Council urging the School Committee to broadcast its meetings on local television. Councillor Tobin has also sponsored legislation to have School Committee members appointed by City Council district to ensure better city-wide representation and accountability. Currently, there are a number of Council districts with no representative on the Committee.   more »

This past Tuesday, the Cape Cod Times ran a story on Councillor Tobin's proposal to devote 1% of the state's 5% meals tax to local aid for the city or town in which the money was generated. Councillor Tobin recently sent letters out to 40 cities and town governments in the Commonwealth to explain his plan and seek support.

''If we are going to talk about the state being a partner with the municipalities, that includes us,'' [Tobin] said. ''We have to take a step back. We need friends. We need strength in numbers across the state to make that argument.''

Back in August, The Boston Globe ran an editiorial on this proposal as well.

Note: The full article is featured after the fold as the Cape Cod Times only grants free access to their articles for 7 days.   more »

He could be a contender
Tobin discussing higher ambitions by Matt Viser, Globe Staff | November 14, 2006

He appeared recently with an American Idol star, judged a citywide vocabulary contest, hosted his own costume gala. Councilor John Tobin suddenly is showing up at high-profile events all over town and inserting himself in high-visibility issues that have implications far beyond his district of West Roxbury and Jamaica Plain.

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