North Royalton: Let’s move forward, vote ‘yes’ on Issue 11
letter to the editor
North Royalton: Let’s move forward, vote ‘yes’ on Issue 11
To the Editor:
The residents of North Royalton have a great opportunity on May 2, 2017. We can choose to grow! Issue 11 is, at its heart, about supporting change and growth. I am 36 years old, and I can tell you that there are incredible differences in the way that students are taught since I graduated high school and even college! I relied almost solely on the good old Dewey Decimal System to research at the library, had never even heard of “coding” and classes were, by and large, lecture-based. Today, students are learning in much more collaborative, interactive ways with an increased emphasis on digital literacy, higher level thinking skills and problem solving. It is clear that technology and related skills are vital for most careers now and in the future, and we need to make sure our students are ready.
To those who make statements along the lines of, “The schools were just fine for me when I was a kid” or, “A 50-year-old building should still be completely functional,” these are interesting thoughts. I would have to ask, would you go to a cardiac surgeon and say, “No, that’s alright, I know that there are better facilities and tools out there, but go ahead and do my triple bypass with a flashlight and a pocketknife, and do it in my living room.” That sounds pretty absurd, doesn’t it? Likewise, our children should be afforded modern facilities. Many neighboring cities have made this decision – this is a common issue for communities of a similar age!
As a mother of three students and a staff member, I can say that the teachers and staff of the North Royalton City School District do an excellent job working around the inadequacies of the buildings and infrastructure that we have, but just imagine if they didn’t need to do this! So, let’s grow! Let’s move forward! Let’s give our students safer, more efficient buildings. Let’s do our part to help facilitate a more modern education for our children, our grandchildren and our neighbor’s children. Let’s protect our property values. Let’s encourage young families looking for a place to live to join us here in our amazing city. My husband, Jeff, and I have voted “yes” on Issue 11. We hope that you will join us!
Kate West
North Royalton
To the Editor:
The residents of North Royalton have a great opportunity on May 2, 2017. We can choose to grow! Issue 11 is, at its heart, about supporting change and growth. I am 36 years old, and I can tell you that there are incredible differences in the way that students are taught since I graduated high school and even college! I relied almost solely on the good old Dewey Decimal System to research at the library, had never even heard of “coding” and classes were, by and large, lecture-based. Today, students are learning in much more collaborative, interactive ways with an increased emphasis on digital literacy, higher level thinking skills and problem solving. It is clear that technology and related skills are vital for most careers now and in the future, and we need to make sure our students are ready.
To those who make statements along the lines of, “The schools were just fine for me when I was a kid” or, “A 50-year-old building should still be completely functional,” these are interesting thoughts. I would have to ask, would you go to a cardiac surgeon and say, “No, that’s alright, I know that there are better facilities and tools out there, but go ahead and do my triple bypass with a flashlight and a pocketknife, and do it in my living room.” That sounds pretty absurd, doesn’t it? Likewise, our children should be afforded modern facilities. Many neighboring cities have made this decision – this is a common issue for communities of a similar age!
As a mother of three students and a staff member, I can say that the teachers and staff of the North Royalton City School District do an excellent job working around the inadequacies of the buildings and infrastructure that we have, but just imagine if they didn’t need to do this! So, let’s grow! Let’s move forward! Let’s give our students safer, more efficient buildings. Let’s do our part to help facilitate a more modern education for our children, our grandchildren and our neighbor’s children. Let’s protect our property values. Let’s encourage young families looking for a place to live to join us here in our amazing city. My husband, Jeff, and I have voted “yes” on Issue 11. We hope that you will join us!
Kate West
North Royalton
