I read in the Henderson Daily Dispatch online edition about Dr. Shearin’s decisions on reversions in state funding.
It was interesting to see that every cut made affected directly the classroom experience of students in Vance County Schools. I was not surprised that no management level positions were cut. Nor was I surprised to read the “spin” put on the cuts by Dr. Shearin and Bowers. Only in the surreal world of Vance County education could a superintendent say what Shearin said with a straight face.
In the interest of full disclosure I should say that I am not resident in Vance County now. I grew up in Vance County and was educated in the publc schools. I received a good education graduating in 1972, going on to college and seminary. My children attended public schools there as well. However, I am dismayed that Dr. Shearin continues to make incredibly misguided decisions. If textbooks are so inadequate to teach the course of study, why is Shearin not leading the charge for better textbooks? I suspect that these are the only cuts Dr. Shearin is willing to make since so many of his friends are in administration.
I recently lived in Vance County for four years and witnessed a steady decline in confidence in the public schools. Parents routinely told me they would gladly send their children elsewhere for an education if they could afford it. Additionally, the elementary school near the church I served has seen a precipitous decline in achievement leading many parents to seek other placements for their children or resign themselves to reality. In almost all the examples that I have cited parents are dismayed by the lack of classroom discipline, few consequences for disruptive children, and a lack of hope that anything will change soon.
However, I have a few suggestions. Perhaps, churches and businesses might lead a fundraising drive to replace the funds which are reverting to the state of North Carolina. Additionally, get off your backsides and volunteer in the schools. Show up at school board meetings and demand answers. Support the school board members who consider these cuts nonsense and ridiculous. Hold your principals and teachers accountable for the classroom atmosphere. Complain loudly and unceasingly until more disruptive students are placed in settings where they can succeed. Demand that the county commissioners spend some of their $15 million dollar surplus on replacing these funds. Finally, call the County Manager every day until the commissioners get off their collective backsides and build the additional schools needed. If the current commissioners can’t get the job done, start recall petitions and find somebody who can.
I am also making these suggestions in the county in which I am currently living. As citizens of the greatest county in the world we have an obligation to offer our voices in changing the world. As children of the heavenly King we are not called to wait for the “pie in the sky in the sweet by and by.” God has called us to be faithful living here in witness to God’s eternal love and grace. Let us give each other this precious gift during the holiday seasons of Advent, Christmas, Hanukah, and Eid-Al Adha.
Rev. J. H. Daniels
Swan Quarter, North Carolina