I love all of your posts, all of your suggestions, and even the comments that are negative about the school. I know it's all typed, but this conversation about the school is good. Communication and respect are the key to any good relationship and I think that's what's happening here. Keep it coming!
So, to let you know a little bit of behind the scenes, I've been meeting, talking, e-mailing with various people about the subject of the schools. I'm getting a bigger picture of what is going on and maybe a small glimpse of how things came to be this way.
I'd love to meet or talk with more people who know more about this than I do. Anyone on the School Committee, or the Finance Committe, or anyone involved in the schools or town hall. The more information I get, the better. Even if you don't agree with me, I'd love to hear from you.
In the meantime, I found this article in the Item today. I'm sure some of you have already seen it, but I thought it was interesting.
School costs put Naughton on hot seat
Share your thoughts.
June 26, 2012
June 17, 2012
Ideas Wanted
I've taken a little break from this. Not really on purpose, but between end of the school year, family obligations, and working, its been difficult to find the time to sit down and collect my thoughts. But the issues with the schools haven't subsided, so I don't want to give up. This needs to be a year long effort, and not just at the end of the year when the budget is in the forefront.
I have ideas that I want to bring to the school. I don't know if my ideas will be accepted or if they'll even work, but I feel compelled to do something and not just sit and complain about the way things are. And this is where I want to present my challenge to you - I want your ideas too.
What are your ideas to help make the school system better?
Your idea is important. Your idea could make a difference. Your idea matters. Share it.
Here are my ideas:
I have ideas that I want to bring to the school. I don't know if my ideas will be accepted or if they'll even work, but I feel compelled to do something and not just sit and complain about the way things are. And this is where I want to present my challenge to you - I want your ideas too.
What are your ideas to help make the school system better?
Your idea is important. Your idea could make a difference. Your idea matters. Share it.
Here are my ideas:
- I want the school to be proactive about budget issues all year and not just at the end of the year.
- Parents should be involved in this all year. Give parents the opportunity to feel invested in the school, instead of just feeling frustrated.
- I want information sessions about voting and town government.
- Voting in this town is low. That's not just a Clinton phenomenon, but why let it continue. And why is town government such a mystery and untouchable. It shouldn't be that way. Let's work on changing it.
- I want the school to be more forthcoming with budget information.
- I support the schools, but I also want to know where my money is going. I know this is a big sticking point for a lot of people, and I don't blame them. There should be an easy way to find out how the money is being used.
June 08, 2012
What Now?
Since Town Meeting last Monday, the dust is settling and I've heard the phrase "what now?" alot. I've also heard anger and concern regarding the consequences of the budget cuts in the schools. It concerns me too. But what's interesting to me, is there seems to be a slight disconnect between how/why the budget cuts occur and how the schools are effected. It's almost as if some people don't believe those two elements have anything to do with each other.
One of the big points of contention is the $700,000 "sitting" at the school's disposals. I agree that is a lot of money, but it seems to me (and again, I need to learn more about it) that it's more responsible for the schools to have what is ultimately a savings account for emergencies and other things that come up during the year. And let's be honest, if the school didn't have any money at their disposal, we'd probably be complaining about that too, because they would have "squandered away" what they had. The school seems to be at the point of a "lose-lose" situation.
So back to the question "what now?".
There are a lot of parents in Clinton who feel the way I do, but how many of you vote? How many of you learn more about how town government works? How many of you are involved in the schools? I'm going to say not enough.
Now before you get angry at me for writing this, I have two points. Number one is: I'm not saying you don't care. Number two is: until last year I was one of the people I'm describing. I do care, but I didn't vote, I wasn't involved in the schools, and I'm still learning how town government works. So I'm not criticizing, I'm simply identifying.
In my opinion, the schools will not get better without improving these three elements. Part of it will come from the school reaching out, and part of it will come from parents being more involved and making more noise.
What are your thoughts?
One of the big points of contention is the $700,000 "sitting" at the school's disposals. I agree that is a lot of money, but it seems to me (and again, I need to learn more about it) that it's more responsible for the schools to have what is ultimately a savings account for emergencies and other things that come up during the year. And let's be honest, if the school didn't have any money at their disposal, we'd probably be complaining about that too, because they would have "squandered away" what they had. The school seems to be at the point of a "lose-lose" situation.
So back to the question "what now?".
There are a lot of parents in Clinton who feel the way I do, but how many of you vote? How many of you learn more about how town government works? How many of you are involved in the schools? I'm going to say not enough.
Now before you get angry at me for writing this, I have two points. Number one is: I'm not saying you don't care. Number two is: until last year I was one of the people I'm describing. I do care, but I didn't vote, I wasn't involved in the schools, and I'm still learning how town government works. So I'm not criticizing, I'm simply identifying.
In my opinion, the schools will not get better without improving these three elements. Part of it will come from the school reaching out, and part of it will come from parents being more involved and making more noise.
What are your thoughts?
June 05, 2012
Town Meeting
The biggest thing that comes to mind about last night's meeting is OMG. Again, I'm not a political person and don't know all the in's and out's of town government (something I'm working on changing), but it's so apparent that the finance committee and the school committee are at war. It seems to me that this is the major reason that things can't get done.
What I don't understand is how it's so easy for people to see that other departments in town need money to continue to offer the best services, but they don't believe it to be true for the schools. The current fire truck is old and is becoming unsafe, so we approve a new fire truck. Of course that's what we should do. The town hall is in desperate need of repairs, so we approve a repair fund. Of course that's what we should do. The school committee needs more money in the budget to be able to offer basic services to our children and keep the schools running effectively, so we completely shut them down and make it so they couldn't possibly get any money from other sources?!? I don't get it.
To be fair, I will admit that the school committee not offering information about where the money is going to be used is probably a bad move. I understand they don't have to, but it does make people angry when we're told we don't need to know. And I do agree that they need a business manager, mainly because the school administrators should be focused on school issues. A neutral party should be focused on streamlining things.
But having said that, I still can't believe that some townspeople don't see the school as a priority to not only maintain, but improve upon. Schools are the anchors of our communities. When the schools suffer, the whole town will suffer.
What are your thoughts about the meeting last night?
What I don't understand is how it's so easy for people to see that other departments in town need money to continue to offer the best services, but they don't believe it to be true for the schools. The current fire truck is old and is becoming unsafe, so we approve a new fire truck. Of course that's what we should do. The town hall is in desperate need of repairs, so we approve a repair fund. Of course that's what we should do. The school committee needs more money in the budget to be able to offer basic services to our children and keep the schools running effectively, so we completely shut them down and make it so they couldn't possibly get any money from other sources?!? I don't get it.
To be fair, I will admit that the school committee not offering information about where the money is going to be used is probably a bad move. I understand they don't have to, but it does make people angry when we're told we don't need to know. And I do agree that they need a business manager, mainly because the school administrators should be focused on school issues. A neutral party should be focused on streamlining things.
But having said that, I still can't believe that some townspeople don't see the school as a priority to not only maintain, but improve upon. Schools are the anchors of our communities. When the schools suffer, the whole town will suffer.
What are your thoughts about the meeting last night?
June 03, 2012
A Little Bit of Change Means A Lot
First, let me start off by saying that I want to start learning some solid facts about the schools and writing about it in a way that everyone can relate to (hopefully). Because this is a learning process for me, I need to figure out the best way to do that. But it will happen.
So for now I want to talk about making change happen. Meaningful change is slow and it takes dedication and consistency. It is for this reason that many people (myself included) don't always want to bother "getting into something". When a problem seems hopeless it's easy to give up because we think "what could I possibly do to change anything?". My answer is - I don't know, but doing nothing certainly won't change anything.
I have a story about myself that relates to this theme. About a year and a half ago, I hurt my back pretty significantly. I could barely walk, sit, stand, or lie down. It effected everything in my life - the way I did things, how I interacted with people, and my mental health. I thought I would be like that forever and it was devastating. But after a while, I took steps to change my situation. I went to a chiropractor, I went to physical therapy, I researched on the internet different exercises and stretches that would help. At first it seemed like nothing would work. The day to day was almost unbearable, but after about 6 months I started noticing a difference. After a year passed, I felt almost normal. Today I feel good.
One step at a time really does make a difference.
In my last post I asked if anyone was interested in starting a group to advocate for the schools and help get a budget passed that make sense (click here to read post). If enough of us get together we can make a difference.
So for now I want to talk about making change happen. Meaningful change is slow and it takes dedication and consistency. It is for this reason that many people (myself included) don't always want to bother "getting into something". When a problem seems hopeless it's easy to give up because we think "what could I possibly do to change anything?". My answer is - I don't know, but doing nothing certainly won't change anything.
I have a story about myself that relates to this theme. About a year and a half ago, I hurt my back pretty significantly. I could barely walk, sit, stand, or lie down. It effected everything in my life - the way I did things, how I interacted with people, and my mental health. I thought I would be like that forever and it was devastating. But after a while, I took steps to change my situation. I went to a chiropractor, I went to physical therapy, I researched on the internet different exercises and stretches that would help. At first it seemed like nothing would work. The day to day was almost unbearable, but after about 6 months I started noticing a difference. After a year passed, I felt almost normal. Today I feel good.
One step at a time really does make a difference.
In my last post I asked if anyone was interested in starting a group to advocate for the schools and help get a budget passed that make sense (click here to read post). If enough of us get together we can make a difference.
June 01, 2012
It's Time for Solutions
I've been reading all of your responses, and keeping up with replies on clintonmass.com and the main themes I'm noticing are Communication and Leadership. To me this translates to something like "we're in the dark, we can't see which way we're going, and the person in front is keeping us in circles".
I'm tired of going in circles.
It's time for solutions.
I want to get a group of us together who advocate for the school (and ultimately our children). The idea is to have a year round effort to increase knowledge, gain support, and get a budget passed that makes sense for the school system.
This is not going to be a quick fix and it's going to take cooperation from multiple groups. But we know the same problems are going to happen next year, so why not be pro-active and start something now.
Who is interested?
I'm tired of going in circles.
It's time for solutions.
I want to get a group of us together who advocate for the school (and ultimately our children). The idea is to have a year round effort to increase knowledge, gain support, and get a budget passed that makes sense for the school system.
This is not going to be a quick fix and it's going to take cooperation from multiple groups. But we know the same problems are going to happen next year, so why not be pro-active and start something now.
Who is interested?
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