Listen Up, School Board: Third Graders Are Talking
By Molly Harper, The Paducah Sun, Ky.
Feb. 12–Letters written to Paducah Public School board members by students give some insight into a third-grader’s priorities.
“Thank you for giving us electricity so we can sharpen pencils and watch TV. Thanks for giving us playground equipment to play on for recess.”
“Thank you for giving us lunch, without lunch, we would starve. Thanks for the electricity. Thanks for field trips.”
“Thank you for paying for our pizza.”
The letters were written as part of School Board Member Appreciation Month to recognize board members for the thankless task of setting tax rates and slogging through stacks of transportation policies, strategic plans and accountability test scores every month. About 100 similar messages were written to McCracken County board members from teachers, parents and community members.
All of the letters were positive and supportive, noting the long hours and the board members’ devotion to curricula. But, frankly, they weren’t as cute as letters written by 8-year-olds.
“Dear Dr. LeBuhn, Thanks for protecting the schools. I heard that you do a job without getting paid … and you also take bad kids and put them in a boring school. And you do very good at it. Keep doing good.”
How can you resist something like that? Though I’m not sure if the author, Clark Elementary School third-grader Patrick W., was referring to the alternative program as “boring school” or some imagined secret in-school suspension dungeon where kids are forced to wear beige and recite the 7-times table over and over again.
It’s interesting that the kids’ letters show that the students seem to have a better grasp of what a school board member does than the average voter.
The kids understand that the board makes decisions that affect them at school every day. They understand that their parents voted the board members into office. They understand that the board members’ chief responsibilities include setting a budget or paying for things and “hiring the superintendent, who hires the principals, who hires really good teachers.”
The kids also understand a key point that escapes a lot of adults — that Kentucky school board members don’t get paid for their service.
Most boards receive a monthly allowance for travel expenses, but some members devote that to charitable causes. The McCracken County school board recently established scholarship criteria for three $1,500 annual awards starting this year. The scholarship funds are provided through each board member’s $75 monthly allowance, which they voted to donate to the Board of Education Scholarship Fund last year. It is estimated that the account will total $7,000 by June 2006.
It might be interesting to ask your student how much they know about their school board. Of course, it might be embarrassing to find that they know more than you.
Do you know who your school board representative is? Have you met him or her? When was the last time you attended a board meeting?
McCracken’s board meets at 5:30 p.m. on the third Thursday of each month. Paducah’s board meets at 7 p.m. the third Monday of each month.
The next Paducah session will be held Monday at Paducah Middle School. The session, plus the March meeting at Paducah Tilghman High School, will wrap up the board’s traveling meetings to gauge public opinion on money-saving options for the district, such as the possibility of closing one of the schools.
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Copyright (c) 2006, The Paducah Sun, Ky.
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