This week I would like to convey a story about how concerned residents can truly make a difference in their school district. First, let me give you a little background information. Two years ago a proposition was put up for a vote to renovate this districts’ high school. Included in the renovation were some extravagant athletic field renovations including the installation of artificial turf. The proposition failed by someone a large margin mostly due to the athletic field component. Six months later a new vote was held in which the one proposition was broken down into three propositions. Again the vote failed by a very narrow margin particularly the non-athletic item. One of the reasons that many believe it failed was because the trust in the School Board had been compromised.
A year later a committee of school district citizens was formed to evaluate the previous proposition and come up with a new set of recommendations as it was evident that some action needed to be taken to improve the high school which had not been renovated in 40 years. The committee consisted of 12 residents, most of whom had children attending one of the four schools in the district and a few who had no children. Two administrators were also heavily involved in the process mainly for facilitation and information.
The committee was formed towards the end of the last school year and met diligently almost every other week in the evening between two and three hours. All told there were over 450 man-hours expended in developing a new proposal to present to the Board of Education. The committee evaluated each single line item in the previous proposition and new items that had been added as a result of a building survey. Whenever the committee had a question on a particular line item experts were brought in to provide more information. It was extremely interesting in how different committee members viewed different aspects of the project. In most cases there was unanimous support for the revised items, however there were a few instances where there was only a strong majority.
When a strong consensus was reached as to what the final proposal should be the committee then held a public meeting to solicit feedback from other residents on the new proposal. A few members of the committee facilitated this meeting after the committee as a whole introduced themselves. It was evident to me that the audience was subdued due to the fact that they understood how much time was spent reviewing the proposal by residents like themselves. This approach provided for a much more constructive dialogue about the components of the proposal. The meeting concluded with a tour of the high school so audience members could see for themselves the current condition of the high school and somewhat visualize what the renovations entailed.
It is still yet to be seen whether the proposal will pass after comments from the audience are taken into consideration. Regardless, this example demonstrates how public service in its purest form can effectively propel positive change. If Congress worked half as effectively as this committee, our country would most likely be better off.
My thanks to the members of this high school project committee. Their efforts have not gone unnoticed no matter what the final outcome. These people are living a no regrets lifestyle.
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