Morton School District 709 Referendum on April 5th—Citizens for Truth letter and my response
I thought I was finished with the Morton School District Referendum. Then, I received the following letter in the mail Saturday and decided to once again respond. The letter in its entirety:
“Dear Fellow Citizens:
Over the last several weeks we have all heard a lot of truths—and mistruths—about the referendum for the Morton schools. It is unfortunate that on such an important issue there would be so much misinformation put forth.
Below is the TRUTH. No misstatements—No lies. Please read these facts—and then you decide whether the investment is worth it.
1) The District 709 School Board engaged dozens of parents and community representatives in helping determine the building plan. The basic purpose of the plan is to alleviate overcrowding in the elementary schools which have inadequate classrooms or no dedicated gymnasium. Currently, students are taught in hallways and gym space is woefully inadequate—which means we are not meeting State requirements and not providing children with acceptable exercise.
2) The design is very functional—not extravagant. Studies show students learn better in natural light so there is an emphasis on windows and glass.
3) Costs will never be cheaper—and the need will not go away. Building in 1, 2 or 3 years will simply cost more as labor and material costs rise. The best value for the taxpayers is now.
4) The schools needing the improvements most desperately are the ones focused on in this plan. The other schools including the high school, junior high and Jefferson will all continue to receive needed annual ‘life safety’ improvements funded from the operating budget. No school is being left out or neglected.
5) Interest rates will probably never be lower. This means now is the best value for the taxpayer.
6) Schools help maintain and enhance Property Values. The school improvements are an important investment in protecting your home’s value.
7) No one wants to pay higher taxes. However, at some point substantial money must be put into these schools to maintain an acceptable (let alone Great) level of education for our community’s children.
Only you can decide if the investment is worth it. However, we appreciate the opportunity to set forth the facts. We have enclosed a copy of an editorial written by the Peoria Journal Star for your review as well. (Editorials from the Peoria Journal Star are worthless!—my addition)
Sincerely,
(No signature given of any member of the group that sponsored the above letter—my addition)
Citizens for Truth
April 5 Referendum”
My background: I was born and raised in Morton. I attended Jefferson Elementary School—the only elementary school at the time—Morton Junior High, and Morton High School. I received my bachelor and master of science degrees in five years of college and then taught high school students in three school districts within Illinois. I was certified to teach in both Illinois and Arizona although I never taught in Arizona. I was an elected school board member in Arizona for four years. During my four years on the board, we built three elementary schools, one junior high school, and a high school. (See my March 31st post for more.)
The seven individual points with my response to each:
“1) The District 709 School Board engaged dozens of parents and community representatives in helping determine the building plan. The basic purpose of the plan is to alleviate overcrowding in the elementary schools which have inadequate classrooms or no dedicated gymnasium. Currently, students are taught in hallways and gym space is woefully inadequate—which means we are not meeting State requirements and not providing children with acceptable exercise.”
My response: Actually, the building plan discussed was not just for three elementary schools. It was a long term plan that discussed and considered EVERY school in the district. Does the author of this letter think we have short memories? For months, the school district ran a discussion by the Superintendent of the district about the needs of all schools on the local cable station. It ran at 9:00PM seemingly every night of the week and it discussed EVERY school. The proposal before the voters is NOT a long term plan and is not presented as such. If you read the “vote no” signs on many lawns in the district, they say “Demand a Better Plan.” As I’ve said before, I will not vote yes on any plan until the district specifically states its intentions for Jefferson School—specifically will Jefferson Elementary School remain a neighborhood school or is it going to be closed in the future.
“2) The design is very functional—not extravagant. Studies show students learn better in natural light so there is an emphasis on windows and glass.”
My response: Personally, I’m not very concerned about the design. However, since it is one of the talking points in the letter, I’ll give a short response. Studies also show students learn better without windows. When I taught at St. Charles High School, the district build a new high school on donated land. The school had no windows—or very few. At least, my classroom had no windows. I didn’t check every room in the building. As I’ve said before, tell me the conclusions you want and I’ll find a study that supports those conclusions. Of course, skylights without windows can also provide natural light. The point is, this really isn’t very important in the scheme of whether or not to build. If it is, then we shouldn’t be building!
“3) Costs will never be cheaper—and the need will not go away. Building in 1, 2 or 3 years will simply cost more as labor and material costs rise. The best value for the taxpayers is now.”
My response: Quite frankly, this is a fallacious argument! The same argument was used by some who purchased houses during the overheated housing market. “Yes, I know the price is inflated but the prices will continue to go up in the future and I’ll still make a good profit.” Of course, we know what happened. The bubble burst! Prices did go down and people lost money and their houses. Imagine if a business built a new factory on the premise that it will never be cheaper to build a new factory. They would be building a new factory every year and every year that increased demand would help to increase prices since when demand increases while supply remains constant, prices tend to increase. Building just to beat price increases is economically idiotic!
“4) The schools needing the improvements most desperately are the ones focused on in this plan. The other schools including the high school, junior high and Jefferson will all continue to receive needed annual ‘life safety’ improvements funded from the operating budget. No school is being left out or neglected.”
My response: Do you know what “needed annual ‘life safety’ improvements” means? Does it mean the bare minimum to maintain the minimum standards required by the State to provide a safe school? If so, the school district has to legally do that anyway. It certainly does not mean there is any plan to keep and maintain Jefferson Elementary as a neighborhood school. If this referendum passes and the bonds are paid off in seven years, will that be the end of Jefferson as a neighborhood school? Many in the Jefferson area believe that to be the case, if not sooner than seven years. Since the school board seems to lack the integrity to tell us what is planned for Jefferson, I certainly understand their concern.
Seriously, “most desperately?” Are any of the schools in a desperate condition of anything? Some people need to look up the meaning of the word “desperate.” In none of these arguments, with the exception of natural light, do I read ANY comments about how this building, which will cost over 12 million dollars, will necessarily improve the educational process. As I have said before, buildings don’t education. In fact, could we be trying to pamper our students and make the educational process too easy?
“You know, one way we grow stronger, more patient, more compassionate, more steadfast is by going through struggles which challenge us.” (From “Why We Suffer”, www.searchtv.org, Page 4) I know a family whose son was very successful from kindergarten through high school. His parents sent him off to the University of Arizona paying his tuition, buying him a house to live in, and covering his expenses. He did well for about a year and ½ and then he failed his second semester of his sophomore year. His father told him if he failed again, the funds would be cut off. He did and they were.
The son moved to Phoenix, got a job, and changed schools. Soon thereafter, he graduated. He told me, “You know, when you’re working and paying your own way, you try a lot harder than when your parents are footing the bill.”
The point is, students don’t need the best of everything. It can actually be a hindrance to learning and accomplishments. No challenges, no struggles, no need to work, grow, and learn. And as I said on my March 31st post, “Do you really believe the State will impose sanctions if the new gymnasiums are not built? Do you really believe that there are no alternatives if we do not build extra classrooms?” I don’t.
“5) Interest rates will probably never be lower. This means now is the best value for the taxpayer.”
My response: Again, this is NOT a valid reason to build. And as far as I’m concerned, until the whole long term plan is laid out and until we know the proposed fate of Jefferson Elementary School, I WILL NOT vote in favor of any referendum!
“6) Schools help maintain and enhance Property Values. The school improvements are an important investment in protecting your home’s value.”
My response: It is NOT buildings that improve the educational process! I’ve known districts that had all shiny, new buildings and the education provided was poor. Buildings don’t educate and school buildings in and of themselves don’t enhance property values.
Why has both Washington and Metamora grown faster than Morton over the last ten years? Is it because their schools are better? Or, could it be that Morton has priced itself out of the housing market to many young families because of the higher cost of housing in Morton? Would that higher cost also include increased property taxes? With the increased taxes at both the State and village level, are we TAXED ENOUGH ALREADY? Are we TAXED MORE THAN ENOUGH ALREADY? How much money can we afford to have confiscated by governments?
“7) No one wants to pay higher taxes. However, at some point substantial money must be put into these schools to maintain an acceptable (let alone Great) level of education for our community’s children.”
My response: MUST? Why? Support this statement! Buildings don’t education!
Finally, anyone who reads my blog regularly knows my opinion of anonymous letters. They are only good for crumbling up and throwing into the garbage can. They are garbage. Who are the “Citizens for Truth?” Why are they afraid to sign their letter? Anyone can call themselves “Citizens for Truth.” That doesn’t mean what they claim is true! Are they even from Morton? They begin the letter with “Dear Fellow Citizens.” Not “Dear Fellow Citizens of Morton.” For all we know, this letter is from one person who does not live in Morton, who is a contractor, who has visions of dollars signs if he can win the bid and build the new additions. Anonymous letters ARE NOT WORTH the paper they are written on!
I’m still voting NO on the referendum on Tuesday!
I thought I was finished with the Morton School District Referendum. Then, I received the following letter in the mail Saturday and decided to once again respond. The letter in its entirety:
“Dear Fellow Citizens:
Over the last several weeks we have all heard a lot of truths—and mistruths—about the referendum for the Morton schools. It is unfortunate that on such an important issue there would be so much misinformation put forth.
Below is the TRUTH. No misstatements—No lies. Please read these facts—and then you decide whether the investment is worth it.
1) The District 709 School Board engaged dozens of parents and community representatives in helping determine the building plan. The basic purpose of the plan is to alleviate overcrowding in the elementary schools which have inadequate classrooms or no dedicated gymnasium. Currently, students are taught in hallways and gym space is woefully inadequate—which means we are not meeting State requirements and not providing children with acceptable exercise.
2) The design is very functional—not extravagant. Studies show students learn better in natural light so there is an emphasis on windows and glass.
3) Costs will never be cheaper—and the need will not go away. Building in 1, 2 or 3 years will simply cost more as labor and material costs rise. The best value for the taxpayers is now.
4) The schools needing the improvements most desperately are the ones focused on in this plan. The other schools including the high school, junior high and Jefferson will all continue to receive needed annual ‘life safety’ improvements funded from the operating budget. No school is being left out or neglected.
5) Interest rates will probably never be lower. This means now is the best value for the taxpayer.
6) Schools help maintain and enhance Property Values. The school improvements are an important investment in protecting your home’s value.
7) No one wants to pay higher taxes. However, at some point substantial money must be put into these schools to maintain an acceptable (let alone Great) level of education for our community’s children.
Only you can decide if the investment is worth it. However, we appreciate the opportunity to set forth the facts. We have enclosed a copy of an editorial written by the Peoria Journal Star for your review as well. (Editorials from the Peoria Journal Star are worthless!—my addition)
Sincerely,
(No signature given of any member of the group that sponsored the above letter—my addition)
Citizens for Truth
April 5 Referendum”
My background: I was born and raised in Morton. I attended Jefferson Elementary School—the only elementary school at the time—Morton Junior High, and Morton High School. I received my bachelor and master of science degrees in five years of college and then taught high school students in three school districts within Illinois. I was certified to teach in both Illinois and Arizona although I never taught in Arizona. I was an elected school board member in Arizona for four years. During my four years on the board, we built three elementary schools, one junior high school, and a high school. (See my March 31st post for more.)
The seven individual points with my response to each:
“1) The District 709 School Board engaged dozens of parents and community representatives in helping determine the building plan. The basic purpose of the plan is to alleviate overcrowding in the elementary schools which have inadequate classrooms or no dedicated gymnasium. Currently, students are taught in hallways and gym space is woefully inadequate—which means we are not meeting State requirements and not providing children with acceptable exercise.”
My response: Actually, the building plan discussed was not just for three elementary schools. It was a long term plan that discussed and considered EVERY school in the district. Does the author of this letter think we have short memories? For months, the school district ran a discussion by the Superintendent of the district about the needs of all schools on the local cable station. It ran at 9:00PM seemingly every night of the week and it discussed EVERY school. The proposal before the voters is NOT a long term plan and is not presented as such. If you read the “vote no” signs on many lawns in the district, they say “Demand a Better Plan.” As I’ve said before, I will not vote yes on any plan until the district specifically states its intentions for Jefferson School—specifically will Jefferson Elementary School remain a neighborhood school or is it going to be closed in the future.
“2) The design is very functional—not extravagant. Studies show students learn better in natural light so there is an emphasis on windows and glass.”
My response: Personally, I’m not very concerned about the design. However, since it is one of the talking points in the letter, I’ll give a short response. Studies also show students learn better without windows. When I taught at St. Charles High School, the district build a new high school on donated land. The school had no windows—or very few. At least, my classroom had no windows. I didn’t check every room in the building. As I’ve said before, tell me the conclusions you want and I’ll find a study that supports those conclusions. Of course, skylights without windows can also provide natural light. The point is, this really isn’t very important in the scheme of whether or not to build. If it is, then we shouldn’t be building!
“3) Costs will never be cheaper—and the need will not go away. Building in 1, 2 or 3 years will simply cost more as labor and material costs rise. The best value for the taxpayers is now.”
My response: Quite frankly, this is a fallacious argument! The same argument was used by some who purchased houses during the overheated housing market. “Yes, I know the price is inflated but the prices will continue to go up in the future and I’ll still make a good profit.” Of course, we know what happened. The bubble burst! Prices did go down and people lost money and their houses. Imagine if a business built a new factory on the premise that it will never be cheaper to build a new factory. They would be building a new factory every year and every year that increased demand would help to increase prices since when demand increases while supply remains constant, prices tend to increase. Building just to beat price increases is economically idiotic!
“4) The schools needing the improvements most desperately are the ones focused on in this plan. The other schools including the high school, junior high and Jefferson will all continue to receive needed annual ‘life safety’ improvements funded from the operating budget. No school is being left out or neglected.”
My response: Do you know what “needed annual ‘life safety’ improvements” means? Does it mean the bare minimum to maintain the minimum standards required by the State to provide a safe school? If so, the school district has to legally do that anyway. It certainly does not mean there is any plan to keep and maintain Jefferson Elementary as a neighborhood school. If this referendum passes and the bonds are paid off in seven years, will that be the end of Jefferson as a neighborhood school? Many in the Jefferson area believe that to be the case, if not sooner than seven years. Since the school board seems to lack the integrity to tell us what is planned for Jefferson, I certainly understand their concern.
Seriously, “most desperately?” Are any of the schools in a desperate condition of anything? Some people need to look up the meaning of the word “desperate.” In none of these arguments, with the exception of natural light, do I read ANY comments about how this building, which will cost over 12 million dollars, will necessarily improve the educational process. As I have said before, buildings don’t education. In fact, could we be trying to pamper our students and make the educational process too easy?
“You know, one way we grow stronger, more patient, more compassionate, more steadfast is by going through struggles which challenge us.” (From “Why We Suffer”, www.searchtv.org, Page 4) I know a family whose son was very successful from kindergarten through high school. His parents sent him off to the University of Arizona paying his tuition, buying him a house to live in, and covering his expenses. He did well for about a year and ½ and then he failed his second semester of his sophomore year. His father told him if he failed again, the funds would be cut off. He did and they were.
The son moved to Phoenix, got a job, and changed schools. Soon thereafter, he graduated. He told me, “You know, when you’re working and paying your own way, you try a lot harder than when your parents are footing the bill.”
The point is, students don’t need the best of everything. It can actually be a hindrance to learning and accomplishments. No challenges, no struggles, no need to work, grow, and learn. And as I said on my March 31st post, “Do you really believe the State will impose sanctions if the new gymnasiums are not built? Do you really believe that there are no alternatives if we do not build extra classrooms?” I don’t.
“5) Interest rates will probably never be lower. This means now is the best value for the taxpayer.”
My response: Again, this is NOT a valid reason to build. And as far as I’m concerned, until the whole long term plan is laid out and until we know the proposed fate of Jefferson Elementary School, I WILL NOT vote in favor of any referendum!
“6) Schools help maintain and enhance Property Values. The school improvements are an important investment in protecting your home’s value.”
My response: It is NOT buildings that improve the educational process! I’ve known districts that had all shiny, new buildings and the education provided was poor. Buildings don’t educate and school buildings in and of themselves don’t enhance property values.
Why has both Washington and Metamora grown faster than Morton over the last ten years? Is it because their schools are better? Or, could it be that Morton has priced itself out of the housing market to many young families because of the higher cost of housing in Morton? Would that higher cost also include increased property taxes? With the increased taxes at both the State and village level, are we TAXED ENOUGH ALREADY? Are we TAXED MORE THAN ENOUGH ALREADY? How much money can we afford to have confiscated by governments?
“7) No one wants to pay higher taxes. However, at some point substantial money must be put into these schools to maintain an acceptable (let alone Great) level of education for our community’s children.”
My response: MUST? Why? Support this statement! Buildings don’t education!
Finally, anyone who reads my blog regularly knows my opinion of anonymous letters. They are only good for crumbling up and throwing into the garbage can. They are garbage. Who are the “Citizens for Truth?” Why are they afraid to sign their letter? Anyone can call themselves “Citizens for Truth.” That doesn’t mean what they claim is true! Are they even from Morton? They begin the letter with “Dear Fellow Citizens.” Not “Dear Fellow Citizens of Morton.” For all we know, this letter is from one person who does not live in Morton, who is a contractor, who has visions of dollars signs if he can win the bid and build the new additions. Anonymous letters ARE NOT WORTH the paper they are written on!
I’m still voting NO on the referendum on Tuesday!
posted by Christian Gunslinger at 5:28 AM
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