To the Editor:
Since when did schools become economic engines? Voting to spend $20 million on school buildings in the expectation of more economic development in Jefferson is a weak hope. And if that development happens, it will occur only in Jefferson, not in other Greene County towns. Let the Greene County Development Corp. tend to development. Let the board of education tend to education.
I’m interested in good education for all students, an education that prepares them for life and work and more education, if they want it. Prove to me that our kids are getting a great education by printing a stellar school newspaper, honoring a winner at a state science fair, sending a Greene County High School graduate straight from Jefferson to Harvard or Grinnell.
I’d like see the Greene County schools among the top-rated schools when the State Department of Education publishes its annual stats on math and reading proficiency.
Vote “No” for sports venues. Make the school board scale back this $20 million bond issue. Lop off the gym. Do the safety measures and modernize the school rooms. And urge the school board to increase the money they spend on educating our young people.
Denise O’Brien Van, Jefferson
