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Clear or Cloudy?
By Carla Surber
Treasurer, Greenville City Schools
Transparency is a word that I remember from a very young age. I
had a first grade teacher, who addressed the windows in our 1930's
classroom as transparent (clear) and the door glass translucent or
cloudy. That stuck with me. The door panes were cloudy and
only let a shimmer of light through. Only glimpses of what was
there, but never a real picture. However, the windows to the
west, which were clearly transparent, would allow for everyone to see
things as they were with no clouding or question.
We can compare that with government today. We want to be
transparent and allow those around us to see the truth. The real
quest in government is to do the will of the people and let them know
it without reservation. It is not always an easy thing to do, but
it is the right thing to do.
Everyday, my office carries out various payments and the other
instructions of the Board of Education in the form of public
records. The Board works through their minutes to provide clarity
to the public on their actions. Employees of the school work in
tandem as interpreters of their actions. The financial staff is very
important in the movement of all these items. We have all worked
as the same team for the last fifteen years to provide the work product
that keeps our district running. From payroll checks to buying
busses for the children of our district, we follow bureaucratic red
tape and procedure to keep things moving on a day to day basis.
We generally make the public records and provide them when asked. We
have been nine years running with the Auditor of State's Award with
Highest honors. None of this would happen without good people in
our district that work daily for the people as a team.
I think transparency in government is the cornerstone of what we
do. Without transparency, there can be corruption. It
is important for us to remember those words.
We voluntarily signed onboard to be part of OhioCheckbook.com. We will
be providing information to the state for their database. This is
just a further extension of what we already do. This project will make
governments even more transparent for those who participate. The State
Treasurer is simply creating a uniform access to all those willing to
participate to make that "clear window".
I have two basic philosophies in my work life. The first is that
we represent the people of the school district and those children with
the best education that can be provided with the most efficient manner
of government. The second is that our office works to support the
staff of the district who act as the first line providers to those in
the classroom. We need to do what we can to shore up the system
to the best advantage of the students. Without them, there would
be no need for us. Without transparency, we are not fit to serve.
We want the public to know that we strive to be that Windex keeping the
windows clear and clean.
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