A group of locals in the Dallas suburb of McKinney are making noise watching over the school board, specifically about the travel habits of the McKinney Independent School District trustees. From a column at the McKinney News:

"How about carpooling to Houston, Austin or San Antonio, instead of flying and paying for rental cars and expensive hotel parking fees? Or better yet, take advantage of the online training that is available as a cheaper alternative for meeting continuing educations requirements via the (Texas Association of School Boards)."

Check out via the comments the interest in what is being written and exposed and some skepticism about the News' credentials. Among the comments:

  “…I'm not the one trying to be a journalist and throwing out insinuations of mis-trust and improper spending.  If I was and once I completed reviewing the data that you reported you received from your initial FOIA request (your 'facts'), I'm sure I would NOT be trying to start a fire on that data/information alone...quite frankly its pretty weak in the grand scheme of things.  On the whole, your 'facts' don't support your insinuation of mis-trust/vacations...its your opinion and one-sided 'conclusion' of those facts that I disagree with.  Comparing those facts with other districts would be a better way presenting a more balanced view of the facts...at least prior to questioning one's integrity...which again is what you are doing.”

Shining a light on public records is an integral part of journalism, and too often newspapers don't have time to follow up on deeper looks into public spending amid projections of their death and staff cutbacks. The public has stepped up in many cases, including the McKinney News' travel piece. Regardless of what one may think about the reporting, getting public records into the hands of their owners - the public - is always a good thing.

Contact Steve Miller at 832-303-9420 or stevemiller@texaswatchdog.org.

Photo of a suitcase by flickr user Mamboman1, used via a Creative Commons license.