Minnesota Educator: Walz finds teacher skills transfer to Congress

The subtitle of "Walz finds teacher skills transfer to congressional work," an article in the August 2007 Minnesota Educator, is a fair summation of what we've seen about Walz's mindset and method as a U.S. representative: "Optimism, research-based decision-making, dealing with constraints guide constructive work."

The new issue isn't online yet, so we'll type out excerpts. The article leads cute:

Recreation for Tim and Gwen Walz's family this summer involves making time for swimming. Dad, a teacher on leave from Mankato West High School, has taken on a job with long commutes, so swimming time with Hope, 6, and Gus, 9 months, arrives on weekends and when Congress is in recess.

While many Minnesota educators have been teaching summer school, taking car trips with their families, fitting in graduate school courses or tucking away information for lesson plans, Rep. Tim Walz has been transferring his teacher skills into serving in the U.S. House.

One of those skills is optimism; another, reasoning from research:

"Teaching and always being a lifelong student taught me to look at evidence on all sides," Walz said. "I look at the facts, not just ideology."

Despite the difficulties in reaching consensus in Washington and despite citizen feelings of disconnections with government, Walz said, when people know something is morally and fiscally right, the issue can move positively and with speed. He cited the care and support for veterans, a cause near his heart as a vet and within his official duties as a member of the House Veterans Affairs Committee.

The article mentions how ag issues blend with conservation and energy issues in the First, and how all three were a theme running through the economic summit in Austin that the Rochester Post Bulletin praised in yesterday's editorial. The article notes:

Of overall concerns about the economic future in the 1st Congressional District, Walz says, he wants to use his platform as the federal representative "to talk about how this all comes together."

The article then moves to a general discussion about fixing No Child Left Behind, before concluding with Walz's consideration of the need to teach people about the connection between civic participation and the quality of their government:

"We have to model engagement," Walz said of public officials. Since taking office in January, Walz has held 25 public forums in his district. He stresses that the goal is listening and debating openly in free-wheeling forums.  Summer, too, means plenty of meeting folks at parades and other community events that offer opportunities to build relationships with constituents.

As a society, he said, he fears "We are verging on pessimism" about Washington's ability to make decisions that matter in their lives," he said. "One of my . . . goals is to re-engage people" in civil, well-thought-out debate."

Having been to a couple of those meetings, we can say that these are indeed Walz's goals. The Austin summit was a prime example of Walz's optimism that thoughtful people can engage in policy making.

Comments

[Charley Underwood]

As a trained social studies teacher, Congressman Walz would note (I would hope) that the Constitution provides that the power to declare war (and, by implication, to end war) rests with the Congress...not the president. In his history classes, he might have learned that the Vietnam war was actually ended when Congress cut of funds for that conflict.

In other words, Rep. Walz's particular participation might lead him to vote to end this tragic conflict in Iraq. It is entirely within his power, if he has the will to exercise it.