Grex Agora41 Conference

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Grex Agora41 Item 236: Other Issues on the June 10 ballot
Entered by gelinas on Tue Jun 4 16:23:30 UTC 2002:

There are a few other issues on this next Monday's ballot.  So here's
the place to spout off. :)

The ones I know about:
        Dexter Library is requesting a bond to build a new home
        Ann Arbor Public Schools are requesting a bond to modify
                Huron and Pioneer High Schools
        Ann Arbor Public Schools are requesting a Sinking Fund for
                capital needs

Are there others?

1 responses total.

#1 of 1 by gelinas on Tue Jun 4 16:30:11 2002:

I intend to vote "no" on the AAPS Bond, but I will vote for their
Sinking Fund.

When the Michigan Constitution was amended to transfer the authority
for raising money for the schools from the local school districts to
the Legislature, Ann Arbor Public Schools lost the two mills they had
been levying to maintain the school buildings and make other capital
improvements.  The school boards since then have set aside the equivalent
of those two mills from the money the Legislature has deigned to allot
to the Ann Arbor Public Schools.  The Sinking Fund is an opportunity to
renew and replace those two mills (even though the amount being requested
is less than that), allowing the full amount alloted by the Legislature
to be used to run the schools.

I am voting "no" for the bond because I believe that we need a new high
school building.  I believe that we CAN afford to run a high school of
1800 students, two more of 1600 students, one of 450 students, a program
of a 100 or so, plus Project Education.  I believe that we will have the
students to fill those buildings, unless we prove that we cannot educate
the students, in which case their parents will take them elsewhere.

This past Sunday, someone who supports the bond said to me, "Transfering a
teacher from a building is cutting a program."  I disagree.  Transfering a
teacher means that that teacher's students get taught by someone else.
Sure, there is only one Jaime Escalante; if you take him out of his East LA
high school, no one else will teach advanced calculus to those barrio kids.
UNLESS THE PRINCIPAL ASSIGNS SOMEONE ELSE TO DO IT.

Reducing Pioneer from 2700 to 1800 students will mean fewer teachers
in the building.  Reducing Huron from 2400 to 1600 students will mean
fewer teachers in the building.  However, the classes they are
teaching can be taught by others, to other students.  Programs can be
designed to teach our kids what we want them to learn.

Most people seem to think that advanced classes can only be taught to a
few students.  I say that ALL of our students should be taught advanced
classes.  Reducing the student-load in the buildings will make it easier
to design programs that take all of our students as far as they want to go.

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