INCLINE VILLAGE, Nev. — The first step in healing broken relationships — and the hardest step — is admitting there is a fixable problem. The Washoe County School District took that first step this week by announcing it would slow down and attack the implementation of International Baccalaureate at Incline's schools the right way — by starting at the beginning and not, as has become a popular phrase in this community, putting the cart before the horse.

“We admit we originally had it backward,” Deputy Superintendent Pedro Martinez told us on Tuesday. “Frankly, the public was right. The district realized it needed to slow down.”

Somewhere between the summer and winter 2009, the school district dropped the ball by:

A. Keeping its staff (the teachers) aware of every step of the implementation process; and

B. Informing parents of changes and challenges to come. Accusations of transfer threats and an inability to listen to teacher concerns certainly did nothing to improve the district's image, or improve the critical relationship between parents and administrators.

Now that the biggest step is out of the way, we expect all sides to be equally accountable for communicating, meaning the district must prioritize communication, and for the parents and faculty to be actively involved in that work. The district already has promised to host many community forums similar to last week's — a good start indeed — and we hope this is a pattern to be repeated through every major change within the district.

We still feel IB is a prized catch for our school system, and, given time, will raise what really has become embarrassing graduation rates for Incline's schools — especially with Latino students. Given Nevada's pathetic standing in national education (yes, we are dead last), the fact we have an opportunity to change locally and become an example for the entire state should be embraced wholeheartedly. But success depends on communication done the right way, which now, after much consternation, is occurring.