And to Think I Was Worried About PAPA Bear...

There are days when I truly wonder if anyone is reading. Once that "post" button is pressed, do my posts go anywhere? Does anyone read them?

Then one of you go and remind me that, yes, there is someone out there. Thanks, Mother Bear. Thank you for the thoughtful and reflective essay. You have truly made my day. Please make sure that you put in your application for the school board. You would be a worthy successor to Ed Frankenfield.

Parents: Your last opportunity to make a difference in YOUR child's education is here. Remain silent, and Morrisville High School closes its doors for good. The high schoolers are farmed out and we become a K-8 district. Is that what you want?

I've noticed we've all been a bit quiet lately - stunned perhaps? I wrote the following opinion/long rant if you are interested in posting it. I'd prefer to remain anonymous at least for now.

Opinion:

There has been much buzz about what lies in the future for Morrisville students. Parents are worried, young teens working toward future goals are anxious, not knowing what lies ahead, where they will be attending school next year or the year after. The board majority has been nothing but grossly disrespectful of the population it was elected to serve -- the students. [NOTE: This is where the root of the problem lies. The Emperor believes his constituency is the taxpayers, not the students. All of you who voted for the Stop the School people: Do you believe the same thing? The correct answer is that his constituency is MORRISVILLE: Child, Student, Taxpayer, and Seniors. Even if you do not have a child or grandchild in this school system directly, you probably have nieces or nephews or grandchildren in other districts. Would you be comfortable trusting their education to William Hellman, CPA, Emperor of Education? LOL--I didn't think so. So why is it OK for the Morrisville students? Stop concentrating entirely on your wallet and consider the long term effects of what this plan will do.]

Board President Bill Hellmann revealed his "plan" at the latest school board meeting, confirming rumors that high school students will be bused to some other school. Despite this revelation, there has yet to be any real public discussion by the current Morrisville board on the issue of tuitioning out the high school and moving K-8 to that building, so we can't be certain of the board majority's intentions. We can, however, make some educated guesses based on the little drops of information that have been squeezed out.

Research into this scenario might offer board members some insight into how it would actually play out. But the board majority appears to be poised to move forward with a plan, without studied contemplation and in spite of the plain facts and expert advice that is available to them. The educational progress, time and money potentially wasted, without obtaining factual information or even looking to that which has already been provided through past studies, could be devastating to this community and our students.

If Hellmann's scheme is the direction the board chooses -we can be certain of some of the roadblocks. First, that the board will not be able to move the elementary school students to the high school building until a suitable plan is in place for the high school students. What might this be? Didn't the Courier recently reveal that neighboring public schools had been contacted about accepting our students for tuition, but all were either unable or unwilling to do so? And, that two Catholic schools and one alternative school expressed some interest?

To this end, unless the state forces another local school to accept our students, or the board decides to bus them far from home, we might speculate that the board appears to be considering some sort of voucher program. The NEA website has some interesting information about the outcomes of voucher programs in other states http://www.nea.org/vouchers/02voutrack.html. If such a plan is in place the law still requires that districts provide a "Free and Appropriate Education" for all students. This means, those for whom space is not available in another school must still be educated, and that education must be appropriate to the students needs.

Could all Morrisville high school students be sent to Catholic School? I would imagine that the constitutional separation of church and state would prevent such a plan being legal for all students. If I am of another religion or simply not interested in my child attending a religious school, I think I'd have a pretty sound legal argument for not sending my child to a Catholic School. The district might offer me the same tuition in a voucher to opt for another school, but if I cannot find another available school at the same tuition, and I cannot afford the difference, the district is still obligated to provide me with a free and appropriate education.

Is my only alternative, then "Alternative School"? Is alternative school appropriate for all students? How will the district provide free and appropriate education for students who are not Catholic or don't require an alternative school program?

Let's say the board somehow overcomes the glitch of actually having to provide education for all our high school students, and we are ready to move the elementary students in. The district will have to get state approval for the plan and the facilities will have to comply with PDE code for elementary school students. Past research has indicated that major renovations are required in order for the building to be acceptable for elementary school use. In addition, there are the problems with air flow (backwards in case of fire -- see past engineering studies), energy inefficiency and outdated systems to overcome. Has the board studied this beyond the brief walk through personally commissioned by our board president but paid for by the public?

There are numerous sound, reasonable ways we can brainstorm to educate all of our students, but we need to work within reality and with absolute accountability to the children. The board majority, or at least the President and one other "we", seem to have forged a plan without public debate, without research, without regard for the educational program or the needs of the students. This so-called plan is really just a numbers-crunching scheme, and does not reflect responsible school directorship. Nor does the budget for this year, where the board is proposing arbitrary cuts to special and alternative school education in defiance of the professional advice of educators. Perhaps the plan is "Hellmann's Plan", and the budget is "Hellmann's Budget", but where then is the deliberation? Where are the answers to our questions?

(Notable exceptions -- Joe Kemp and Robin Reithmeyer have both worked to provide respectful answers, along with the shining example of respectful board service, the late Ed Frankenfield.)

The board has an ethical and legal obligation to the students of this district. Perhaps the President and others did not know what they were getting into, besides their single minded and unresearched mission to stop the new school. However, as elected officials they are, whether they like it or not, accountable to the laws that protect the rights of our children. Their duty involves due diligence in decision making, along with accountability to Sunshine Laws that require public deliberation and protect the public's right to know of and be heard in board policy and decision making. [Note: Bold is mine]

School board service is serious business with the ultimate outcome of helping to shape the future for our students. Our children cannot be guinea pigs to the board president's unstudied plans. They don't have time for trial and error; childhood is short. If board members are not up to serving our children -- all of our children, renters, owners, children with special needs, and children who require alternative education -- through diligent, studied, responsible decision making, then they don't deserve the honor of this position.

Mother Bear