Letter to the editor – David and Teresa Skalla

Dear editors-

We have been asked WHY we will vote ‘yes’ on a school bond vote. Here is our lengthy, but thoughtful response:

We COULD vote ‘no’ for these reasons:

1. Our kids won’t directly benefit. Our youngest, Calvin will be a senior this coming school year and will be out of school before the construction is complete.
2. It was good enough for us (and our kids). Teresa went to Cooper and our kids went to Scranton (when it was J-S). Why do we need to all be in one town?
3. Shouldn’t it be about better education, not better facilities?
4. We own farm land and our taxes will go up.

BUT WE WILL VOTE ‘YES” for these reasons:

1. It’s not about our own kids; it’s about ALL kids in Greene County and it’s about improvements to our community.
2. It may have been ‘good enough’ for the past, but it is not good enough for the present or future.
   1. There are more students with severe allergies and health needs than ever before. Being close to a medical facility is of utmost importance. Having students in Grand Junction makes this a concern.
   2. Secure buildings are a must now. Secure buildings in a town that is served by local law enforcement are even better! Our world is unpredictable and the safety of our students should be a #1 concern. The plans include secure entrances at both buildings.
3. Students are not educated like they have been in the past.
   1. Learning is much more active and collaborative than ever before. We need classrooms designed to facilitate learning with technology for the 21^st century and beyond.
   2. Right now is the most exciting time in education in Greene County! We know what is effective for student learning and the educators have amazing coaches and resources to accomplish this. We just need to update our facilities to enhance this ideal learning situation.
   3. Yes, we do need to add a gym on to accommodate grades 5-12, so it should be done right! This part is not only for the students, but for our community. There is so much positive momentum now in our community and this would be an excellent extension of this.
      1. Having the facilities to host tournaments, competitions, and mega-nights brings much revenue to a community. Our family has spent substantial amounts of money in communities where we attended weekend volleyball tournaments, AAU baseball and basketball tourneys, and mega-nights for our children. And also included in this list would be music and speech competitions that we haven’t attended, but many do.
      2. The pride that a community has in their facilities transfers over to a pride in education.
4. As a farm family, we believe in investments. Although our taxes will go up, this bond issue is an investment in our students, our community, and our future. We see that the benefits will far exceed the expense of our rise in taxes.

Sincerely, David & Teresa Skalla, Jefferson

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