Thursday, April 28, 2016

Hornets Nest

Dear  Athenians,

We've got ourselves a hornets nest.

know a thing or two about hornets because my son is obsessed with hornets intellectually curious.  Did you know the Asian giant hornet kills 40 people every year in Japan?  Can you imagine? Those things are ruthless!  Breathe a sigh of relief they aren't in Ohio yet.  We don't live in Japan, but it looks like we still might have a giant hornets nest in our backyard.

School funding.

I'm sure it's totally not complicated and can be easily explained using common core math principles.

None-the-less, silly little me is just a wee bit confused. Just a wee bit.

If I were cooking in my kitchen which wouldn't happen because I am married to an awesome guy who prefers to cook because he's tasted meals prepared by me and knows that this is not something he wants subjected to, but I digress. Where was I?   Right!   I'm cooking and a fire starts on my stove.  I call 911.  They would dispatch fire fighters who would hopefully come into my kitchen and attempt to put out the fire. 

Imagine my confusion if instead of coming with a lengthy hose and water, the fire fighters arrived with a bulldozer and just decided to bulldoze my kitchen. This would leave part of my house in rubble and I would be shocked and speechless.

It sadly seems our children's school district is on fire. I'm not trying to fuel the flames, but I don't like the idea of bulldozing the school district either.  

I'd love to know the plan. I'm a type A personality planner. With all the rumors buzzing about, a plan would help stop the rumors, clarify the facts, and continue the discussion.  As I hear the buzz and fret about the school budget, I wonder what the answers are to some of these questions:

How many teachers and aides who are currently teaching in Athens City Schools won't be teaching next year? 
Of those not returning, how many are retiring, how many are resigning, and how many have been told they must go?
What grade levels and/or subjects do these departing teachers teach?
How big will the class sizes be next year as compared to this year?
What electives will not exist next year that exist this year?
What alternatives were tried prior to this decision to reduce the workforce?

According to my son, you must be careful and patient when removing a hornet's nest. You don't want to injure yourself or those around you. However, hornets nests are best destroyed at dusk when the hive is less active. I'd like to see our hornets nest exposed in broad daylight. I want to hear all sides of this issue. I'd like time to weigh options. 

Those of us who love our little town, and everything it has to offer, need more information and transparency. 

Join me at the May 19th school board meeting to hear the buzz.