Editor:
I am writing in response to inaccurate arguments being made opposing the school bond issues. One writer says, Until parents and students value education, the current problems in our schools will remain. Lets get real and amend that statement to, Until the community values education .... Yes, parents and their kids are on the front lines, but education never happens in a vacuum. Until kids, especially those at risk, see that their community values education, their motivation cannot be as high as we all would like it to be. When students hear that for the past decade or so, their community has not endorsed funding for their schools, they wonder why they should care. When students travel to other schools and see modern computers and ceilings that are not falling down, they wonder why they should care. When they hear voters at home constantly griping and doing nothing to help the schools, they wonder why they should care. Our students know when their community does not value education, and then they wonder why they should care.
My point is that no matter what a school district does, whether getting outstanding ratings or just getting by, some folks feel that they dont need to pitch in. There are always excuses for not aiding education. Listen, these are our kids and our neighbors kids, not someone elses from Denver or Durango. These teachers are our neighbors, many having lived here for generations. Lets not take out our disappointment in big government on our neighbors and their kids. Education really is community government; vote yes! Vote to pay $2/month (on a $100,000 house in Cortez) for our kids.
Jim Skvorc
Cortez
Via email