Consultant releases Board evaluation

( c) 2010

After months of study and evaluation, representatives from the L Frank Baum Institute for Municipal Government which evaluates municipal employees and government officials, is scheduled to present its report at an upcoming Village Board meeting.

I was able to contact Seymour (Sy) Copaff to discuss the upcoming report.

Copaff told me that he looks for cognitive, emotional, and tenacity levels demonstrated through public dealings. "Quite simply," Copaff says, "we're looking to see if officials have a brain, heart and courage. That is the premise behind Mr. Baum's philosophy."

It's a tall order, to be sure, but Copaff is pleased with the work of his staff.

Breaking down the degrees of functionality, Copaff found that everyone on the Board has a brain. "They seem to use them most of the time. We were especially pleased that, for the most part, neurological functions were logical and goal driven. We call this the Scarecrow Analysis." Our concern is that there was some brain wavelength that was not coherent and often limited to three-letter obstacles or repetition.

Looking at the Social-emotional model used by educators, Copaff found that most of the officials had hearts. "They had to be in the right place," Copaff said, "because why else would they run for a Village Board spot?" He did express concern that the hearts were not all beating at a regular pace. "Some it seemed lack the function to pump properly, which results in an anomaly that chills the blood to the point where it's like ice water. He pointed out that the end result affects the neurological function. "People with the problem are often heartless and lack effective demonstration of cognitive skills.

We call this the Tin man syndrome.
The third domain on the guidesheet is courage. "People think they have courage because they can wave a flag and storm the bastille," Copaff said. "In reality, however, they get courage mixed up with stupidity and arrogance." He pointed out that like the Tin Man Syndrome, this can have an effect on how a person not only presents themselves, but is seen in the public eye. The L Frank Baum Institute calls this aspect the Cowardly Lion Syndrome. "Some people think we use "lion" in place of lying, but our founder, Mr. Baum, maintained that there was no connection. Of course, that was years ago before there was a Buffalo Grove, let alone a Buffalo Grove Village Board. It is rare , but Copaff says there are cases where the Baum Institute has found all three traits in a municipal official. "Generally we find the cause is one that coincides with a need for power, attention and control."

Does this happen often? "I can't recall a time when it did, but research has shown that the is a serious problem that can dramatically impact the cohesiveness of a governing body."

Copaff says that because of the combination of all three symptoms, the Institute calls this the "Elphaba Syndrome." Copaff says people are upset and often offended by individuals who suffer from this and often wish they would simply melt away. "Yes, Mr. Baum was very found of that form of liquidation."

Does Mr. Copaff see any of that on the Buffalo Grove Village Board?

He only smiled.