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January 17,1974 PHOENIX Page 5Sharing Pow er Top to BottomIs Essence of Harris Aim sBY CORRINE COLEMANSettled in his 10th floor Court Street office, J. Jerome Harris, the new Superintendent of Community School District 13, has begun the work left waiting since the leaving of his predecessor six months ago.Personnel m atters, like the hiring of a media expert needed to purchase the equipment earmarked for the schools from Brooklyn Heights to Bedford Stuyvesant, occupy Harris%u2019 time these days. And so there are few moments to contem plate the reasons for the recent attempt of Heights School Board member Seymour Pustilnik to stop the appointmentSince Pustilnik%u2019s attempts were discredited with the proof of Harris%u2019 veracity in his descriptions of his background as Vice Principal in the Los Angeles school system available in official L.A. Documents, there seems no reason to defer a moment to such diversions.does not seem as absolute in District 13 either. The four junior high schools in the district are run by two male principals and two female (one white and the other black) Harris has found the district schools %u201cvery warm%u201d , with the interest of the adm inistrators better than he%u2019s seen anywhere else. Much of the movement in the district took place in recent years he feels, and so he has moved into a spot where morale is relatively high.Reluctant to describe plans for specific programs in the schools%u2014 %u201cthis can become an obsession,%u201d%u2014 Harris feels that needs of the various set ups must first be identified. To this end he has asked the district staff to spend more time in the individual schools.Harris is interested in designing ways for the four junior Highs to %u201ctalk to each other,%u201d%u2014to share what%u2019s working well in one school with what%u2019s going on in another. Eventually he fill follow this intercomm unication plan in the elementary schools.Discussing the problems in the district, Harris acknowledges that %u201chere like everywhere eise reading is the number one concern. Reading, however, must be kept enticing, rather than a chore, and must be kept throught the entire program he asserts.With 30 percent of the district%u2019s school children Puerto Rican, concentration has begun on bilingual learning. However, the administrator advises, there is some problem in getting bi-lingualHarristeachers%u2014getting the programs fully staffed.%u201cWe don%u2019t have enough kids from the district getting into special high schools,%u201d Harris advises, adding that Blacks and Puerto Ricans are also being frozen out of the vocational schools. %u201cWe have to encourage them to take the exams%u2014to get into the special schooll.%u201dThe borough resources, businesses and foundations should be tapped to enhance the school system, the new superintendent feels. Community people too, artist, craftsm en and professionals, should also be sharing their special skills with the children. Though the Bed-Stuy Restoration Corp. and the. Continued on P age 12Heights Chamber Society ScoresAs it. turns out, the necessity for sharing information is the essence of the Harris philosophy. Believing that systems fall short when communication is poor, the L.A. Educator is bent on running a school district with information shared %u201cfrom top to bottom.%u201dSpecifically relating to the concept of accountability in the school system, Harris sees the work of the school board just beginning. Noting that the system %u2014even after decentralization%u2014tends to fall away after the selection process, he insists that the board fullfill its obligation %u201cto see that I move in a right direction%u201d . Following this thesis down the line, Harris sees the need for interconnections%u2014 between the superintendent and the principals, the principals and the teachers, the teachers and the children%u2014with the parents of course moving from their connections with their children, to lean too on all the school personnel%u2014 from teacher to the district board.%u201c Shared power is increased power,%u201d Harris feels, adding that a program which includes a lot of people%u2014all in on the responsibility%u2014becomes all the more powerful%u2014all the more productive.There are more than 20 schools in district 13, located in neighborhoods as varied as Park Slope, Clinton Hill, Fort Greene, Bedford Stuyvesant, and Brooklyn Heights. Harris, hitting New York during a cold January has begun his visits to these communities%u2014to the local agencies as well as to the schools, keeping midnight hours on the job.With the greater part of District 13 made up of minority groups%u2014 mostly Black and Puerto Rican, Harris has found the school administration more reflective of this breakdown than he expected. The typical school set up of female teachers and male administratorsRego's RoostTASTY FRIED CHICKENOpen Every Day 11a.m. - 11p.m.169 Atlantic Aw. 888 5th Ave.IAT CCilSTOW STHEETI