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"The schools belong to all of us -- to the parents whose children attend them; to the taxpayer who pays for them; to the personnel who work in them. We have an obligation to the total community. We touch the full fabric of the community."
-- Dr. Jayne Sargent, Superintendent, Jackson Public Schools
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Dr. Sargent's commitment to the community is deep and genuine. "If our children are in school, we want only the best for them," she says. Dr. Sargent talks about feeling "a moral obligation to provide a quality education to all children."
Her commitment is wise, too. A parent is the first and most important teacher in a child's life. Having parents involved with their child's education may mean the difference between regular attendance and truancy. Teachers can't teach a child if he's not there. Parents can help their children with homework. They can communicate the importance of a good education and the joy of learning. A parent or guardian can set expectations for their child's behavior at school, and support any disciplinary measures the school may have to take. Extra adults in the schools mean additional supervisory presence in the hallways and classrooms, more hands and hearts and minds attending to the lives of children.
And Dr. Sargent's commitment is also pragmatic: tax dollars are the financial and political life-blood of a school district. We all pay for the public schools, whether our children are in the public schools or not. If we do not have children in school, we still pay for the schools, and wonder how our tax dollars are being spent and if they're being spent wisely. Accountability is expected. The business community is more concerned about the performance of schools than parents may realize. Any business or chamber of commerce person knows that the first question a businessperson asks when thinking about relocation is, "What are the schools like?" Businesses draw from the local labor pool. Most often, that labor pool has either been educated by the local school district, or will put their children in the local schools. Either way, they want to be sure the schools are doing a good job.
Communicating with these publics is important; communicating successes to them is especially important. Letting them know that their tax dollars are well-spent is extremely wise, especially when large expenditures --for a new building or for technology infrastructure-- are involved. In the end the schools are woven of the fabric of the community. To keep it from unraveling, all threads must be strong.
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"If we can improve the perception about our schools, and indeed, the reality of the quality of education, then we will improve the quality of life of this community. And that IS what education is about. Quality of life."
-- Mr. Ron Sellers, Deputy Superintendent, Jackson Public Schools |
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