It's Not Over

Well, the big vote was today. Ron Margiotta was the lone dissenter in the Wake School Board’s decision to convert 19 elementary schools to mandatory year-round. No surprise there! The room was full, but not overflowing– and many people spoke against the conversion. I’m really afraid too many people have the mindset of, “it’s a done deal – no use wasting my time fighting it”. Not that I can blame anyone. When you fight year after year and feel like your words fall on deaf ears, it’s only normal to get discouraged.

Please don’t give up now, though, when you’re needed more than ever. County leaders need to know that the bond is doomed to failure if they insist on proceeding as planned. If enough teachers, parents, and other citizens rise up against this, I truly believe that they will have to back off. Plus, believe it or not, word about this is just now getting out to many people. As the truth about mandatory year-round conversion spreads - which it will - , it will become evident that far-reaching negative repercussions will be felt by all.

So far, the reaction to the mandate has been just as predicted months and months ago. There will, I believe, come a time when the School Board will no longer be able to ignore reality. Excellent teachers have already left our system, and others have promised to leave if forced to choose between their career and their family. Please continue to fight against a plan that calls on parents to compromise their intrinsic knowledge about what is best for their children. This goes so much deeper than an extra week or two at the beach. As I’ve told the School Board over and over, for thousands of families, a traditional school calendar is not just a preference, it is a necessity.

Thanks for all the support out there! Keep telling others about the petition, and I will continue to publicize updated tallies and comments. Also, remember to read blog entries from the past few weeks, and even earlier. Some important information has been shared in previous postings. I’m just getting warmed up for this battle! Are you with me?