Education - an ongoing mission and community partnership

I want to thank Scott Hunter for his well-thought-out editorial in last week’s edition of The Star. He’s 100% correct — because the levy is asking the voters to approve a lower rate on their home values, it doesn’t mean that the school has fewer needs. 

Education is an ongoing mission. Community partnership with the schools is vital if that cause has any chance to succeed. This levy will fill important special and pre-K education needs, as well as driver’s ed. The levy will also allow schools to lower class sizes and fund additional support staff for students with individual needs. 

Supporting the levy will also help fund maintenance and repairs in our schools, which are all the plumbing, landscaping, and little fixes that are needed as a facility gets used over time. If you were ever in schools with outdated HVAC systems, you can understand how important heat and air maintenance is towards helping student focus. This levy also funds tech that gives our students 21st Century college and career readiness. Other schools around the state are helping kids gain skills to compete in future job markets. Let’s keep up with them. 

In his editorial, Scott said that though local schools aren’t perfect, funding cuts will not help. I’ve seen teachers and staff work very hard to help kids get a quality education and support them in extracurricular activities. The schools need our continued help. The schools need community involvement. The schools need our votes. I’m giving mine to support the levy.

Thank you, 

Joe Tynan