What can I do for you?

What can I do for you?

So now that you know all about me – I’m sure you are asking what I can do for you if I were on the Board of Education.

Let’s go back to who I am.

I research. No decision will be rubber stamped for me. I will not always vote yes, but I also will not always vote no. Every vote I render will be made after careful consideration. The girls at work tease me often – one bought me a card game called “Worst Case Scenario”. Why? Because one of the questions I always ask when making any decision is – What is the worst case scenario if we follow this path? What is the worst case scenario if we don’t? Because what life comes down to is what consequences can you live with? It all comes back to research and having an open mind.

Which brings me to one of my other traits – being frugal while at the same time realizing money needs to be spent in order for the district to continue to be successful. No one likes to pay taxes. I am not rich by any sense of the word. But paying for our schools is a fact of life. The key is not to stop spending – but to spend wisely. Prioritize where the money should be spent – where we can afford to cut and where we need to add funds – and then spend it on those programs wisely.

As for spending wisely – I’ll move to teachers. My youngest child is awake for about 13 hours per day. Half of that time is spent in school with her teacher. Other than parents, there are few people that have as big of an impact on a child than a teacher. I still remember many of my teachers from grade school – projects we did, discussions we had. I remember my third grade teacher bringing out my love of math with her teaching methods so much that I excelled in math for the rest of my school years. I remember my 8th grade Civics teacher spending 3 months running the class as if we were the senate and he was the president. I learned more about our government in those three months than most students would in years. Teachers are mentors, advisors, counselors, and caretakers. My children have been lucky to have some of the most wonderful teachers in Roxbury. Only a short time ago I sent a note to Mrs Carlson of Jefferson school to let her know how much my son had benefit from being taught by one specific 4th grade teacher. Mrs Joan Damell had taught him time management skills that were helping him to be successful years later in school, and will continue to help him as he moves through life. This hasn’t been an unusual experience – Roxbury has some of the best teachers available – and I don’t think we should ever underestimate the impact they have on the lives of our children.

Lastly, I am a planner. In any organization as big as Roxbury township, planning is what allows us to spend money wisely. Making decisions without careful planning means we may have done it in a more efficient or cost effective manner. Careful planning also means that the other half of our district – the parents – are always involved in the process and always aware of what is going on. Communication with the parents and taxpayers is key to making the relationship work. Not being informed early enough in the process to have some input means people feel powerless – and no one wants to feel powerless over the life of their young child. Allowing parents to be informed of upcoming decisions and why they are being made gives them the opportunity to support that decision – or state their case against it. Either way it offers some feeling of control – and what parent doesn’t want to feel like they have some say in their child’s education? You don’t have to be a helicopter parent to want to be informed.