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CHARRETTE
“Char*rette – a meeting in which all stakeholders in a project attempt to resolve conflicts and map solutions.”
I am an LHS Graduate, and mother of 4 LHS Graduates. I have voted for every existing board member, and a member of a facebook group “Lowell Kids First”. It is a group of concerned mothers, fathers and grandparents who are now being called extreme both in the recent letter to the Editor and now in a flier that has been mailed in the Lowell district with the names of two incumbents Jessica Curtis, Pat Nugent and Candidate, Jennifer Daughterty. This flier says “MAGA extremists are waging war on our kids. They are banning books, bullying students, erasing history, defunding classrooms, and destroying our Public schools.” It also says “Not authorized by any candidate or candidate committee.” Michigan PAC with ties to National Organizations pushing a national agenda funded this. So who is really advocating for our children? People who live in our community? Why is money pouring into our community from these outside sources?
In the interest of brevity on a subject that has been anything but brief, I am writing this letter to reach out to parents and community members with a voice of reason. (You’ll have to trust me that this IS the brief version!) Contrary to the divisive rhetoric being brought into this debate, each parent in the community wants what is best for their child. The issues lie with whether or not parents have the tools to make those decisions. The fact that this debate exists should be proof enough that parents had no idea about the content and the process. Some parents know now because of work that has happened in this group. I, for one, have learned far more in this group about the content than over the last 20 years of putting my kids through our schools. I wrongfully assumed that we would sign permission for such content. While there is some truth in that, those parameters are not what I thought they would be.
This group was recently attacked in a Letter to the Editor and published in two local publications. The LHS Principal and Media Specialist were the first two signers of this letter. I consider the latter a long time friend and know many of the individuals who signed the letter in support. The format and subject of this letter pertained to the existing methods of how the library manages 125,000 and serves over 4000 families. A few years ago, I might have even been one to have signed that letter based on how articulate it reads and the basic descriptions of how sensitive material is managed. I might have signed because I had trust in the people in charge. I know they are of good character and try to do what is right for children. After joining the group and hearing both sides, I knew there was a problem. And this election has brought out the agenda and the funding for us all to see. Call me optimistic but I believe we CAN do better than a Letter To The Editor and a divisive flier! And I personally would like to hear those 3 candidates disavow that flier. Do those in the Lowell District really believe it is an ‘extreme’ position to believe we can do better? If so, what an upside down world we live in!
The letter stated that parents have chosen the “most salacious” material to read at board meetings and misrepresented what access children have with these books. They chose not to name one specific book and example to simply set that record straight. There is a list of over 140 books (so far) with “salacious” content that parents should be made aware of. Is it really extreme to suggest we can do better? How hard would it be to do a better job on rating and communicating 140 books out of 125,000? I do not believe the existing rating system and book reviews are enough for parents to decide. Nor do I believe every parent has time to read and preview every book. In my opinion, asking parents to “Opt Out” is their way of saying they cannot do better than the existing system. I have so many more questions and comments than I could write here. Including what does this flier mean when it says we are “defunding our Public Schools”? Is this a reference to the hundreds of parents, who chose to move their child out of the district when he couldn’t get a sit down with the board and a resolution to his concerns ? Is this the defunding they mean ? How sad that Lowell Schools has lost so many good families over this!
Parents and community members will find more information on the Facebook page “Lowell Kids First” than they will find from our schools. I would encourage folks to join and learn and discern for themselves rather than make assumptions about either side of the debate. There is also a very helpful informative website from a neighboring district – www.ottawaimpact.com. And there is a Q&A on the schools website that was also part of something that came out of this debate. This is about education, our kids and parents’ choices. Parents can only CHOOSE when they have all the information on content and context.
There is work to be done and we should be grateful we have such caring parents in our district to be involved. Isn’t the goal to have all parents involved ? Don’t all kids do better in school with involved parents? So why does it appear smart educated people are failing at this and pointing blame rather than rolling sleeves up to find solutions for both sides? It appears to me, based on the letter, and based on the flier, that we have people who have given up on finding a solution that works for all parents. I say -find common ground. Put Kids First – ALL kids. “Safe spaces” should encompass ALL kids in ALL spaces. Do we need to identify a “Safe Space”? In fact, shouldn’t it include School Board meetings? Shouldn’t parents be allowed to speak concerns with certain books if needed without fear of retribution just as a staff member shouldn’t have to fear being bullied with name calling?
This is why I have chosen to vote for Kyle Hoff, Chris German and Blough for school board. I used to think that having years of experience in our small town and even being a graduate was a strength of a board member. But now I see it as a potential weakness. A lack of diversity of thought. A weakness of being stuck in the old ways and too busy defending existing policies and not understanding that in every problem / challenge lies an opportunity to improve. I feel frustration because what I have watched could be likened to two ships passing in the night. Never hearing or seeing each other. I truly feel that as a district filled with smart individuals, we absolutely CAN do better than a public letter looking to shame parents for using their rights to speak up looking for solutions or a flier calling them ‘extremists’. We should always be looking for ways to improve our schools. And it seems some of our existing Administration and board have given up finding solutions and this resulted in the letter and subsequent flier shared last week. Diversity should encompass diversity of thought. This can only happen when both sides are engaging in conversations. Why would we elect those whom have already told us they are not interested in solving these problems and in fact believe we are ‘extreme’? I don’t have over 400 signatures, but Lowell Kids 1st has over 800 members (and growing) that deserve better.
Let’s do better!
Tonia North
City of Lowell
An LAS board member did condemn the last-minute “MAGA-extremists are” mailers. North’s preferred candidates, however, were utterly silent save German and only when publicly pressed, to distance and deny affiliation with the ubiquitous orange and white trio of candidates signs that had the very same disclaimer she denounces in her letter. What’s more, LK1, which is a group that aims to push for transparency, is a private page that denies entry to some to its social media groups and bans those who question its stances. This is the very antithesis of transparency.
You cannot have it both ways, Ms. North. Indeed, we can ALL do better.
My child is in the elementary and since second grade teachers encourage student to keep their library books at school and not take them home. Intentionally or not keeping my child from bringing home the library keeping me from monitoring what my child’s read or exposed to.
Until recently I’ve never been given access to my child’s library account.
I’ve been told that I have the right to see curriculum which should include what books the teacher plans on reading to the class throughout the year, but I have no idea how it’s request the list.
Just like until recently I didn’t know how to or that I could exclude certain books for my child to check out from the school library.
They tell me that I have to let my child handle things but in a way they are excluding me from her education and making it more difficult for me to monitor what is happening.
Recently I commented that I would take my child to the local KDL to help pick out appropriate books, the teacher quickly suggested that my child talked to the librarian help my child select a book.
For one that it’s away from my role as a mother to teacher how to pick out books that are appropriate and for two excluding me from monitoring her book choices.