[Schoolconsolidation] Fwd: Response to Mr. Sanborn

[butta5 at adelphia.net]

=============
Date: Thu, 4 Oct 2007 16:30:15 -0400
From:  <butta5 at adelphia.net>
To: schoolconsolidation-owner at cammad.net
Subject: Response to Mr. Sanborn

As a parent who had a child at all 3 levels of public education last year - 1 in elementary at MLD, 1 at TAMS, and 1 in high school, I want to share my own knowledge of the school bussing and a few other situations with townspeople who have much younger children who have not reached school at all yet, or are not yet in middle or high school.  

1. To clarify, Thornton Academy does not have an open campus. Students are not allowed to leave campus between the hours of 7:45 and 2 p.m. Some high school's do have open campus policies, TA does not. 

2. With regard to the length of the bus rides. We live 1.5 miles from MLD School. My 4th grader is on the bus for roughly 20-25 minutes in the morning, and 40 minutes in the afternoon for a total of an hour + each day. My student who was a TAMS last year was dismissed from school at 2 p.m., and walked through the door before 2:30 each day. 
     With regard to the morning schedule and amount of sleep, my son who was at MLD for middle school in 7th grade  was picked up by the bus in the morning at roughly 7 a.m. Last year  for 8th grade at TAMS he was picked up at 7 a.m. And this year in 9th grade at TA he is picked up at 7 a.m. as are all Arundel high school students in our neighborhood regardless of the school they attend.

4. And lastly, and just as a side note, I take exception to Mr. Sanborn's wording that children are "dragged through a facility that is old, outdated, and in need of repair (MLD)....
A school is a community for learning, not a building. The building is the shell, the staff, teachers and students are the school. The school is the heart of this community. We have no town center, and a town without a school or a town center has no identity - there are no roots to the tree. 
Old buildings are certainly an issue, but there are old buildings in both RSU's. Both KHS and TA have old buildings, many of TA's are among the most historic in the area. 
A sense of belonging and a tight knit community school with caring and quality teachers are what brought us to the small town of Arundel 10 years ago. For us, it was the perfect alternative to the bigger areas with big schools that surround Arundel.
Amazingly and with great success the administration and staff at TAMS have created a top notch tight-knit community school for our children. They love it there! It's a seemless transition, and our community can expect nothing but great gains socially and academically for our middle school students in the coming years at TAMS. My own children will not be affected by the consolidation, so I have no personal interest in the outcome, and I don't know what the right direction is. 
However, having the benefit of 13 years of experience with a child in the public education system in Arundel, I can say with utter certainty that it would be an absolute shame to lose our community school, and our opportunity to attend the unparalled TAMS, and I hope both remain open and vibrant school communities for our children for many years to come.

Donna Buttarazzi=============