The babyback ribs have been marinating in the fridge since yesterday.  We’re all ready to kick off the summer and enjoy the holiday. 

Memorial Day.  Though technically summer doesn’t start till the the third week in June, most of us mark the beginning of summer with this holiday.  The community pool opens today. Much of the population will be firing up the grill.  Let celebrations begin!

But before we get carried away with the festivities, let’s take a moment to ponder the reason for the holiday.  For almost 2 and half centuries, men and women have given the ultimate sacrifice for our country.  Brave patriots fought for us.  They gave us the freedom to celebrate today. Today we honor them.  Today we thank them.

Nita

Wow.  I am dragging this morning as I sip my coffee and take a second dose of Advil.  I didn’t sleep much last night– too wound up from the meeting at school. 

I got there around 6:00 pm and left about 10:00 pm.  It was a long night.  My feet still hurt from standing in those dress shoes for so long.  My head hurts.  I’m tired and sleepy. 

Sparks flew last night from the verbal sword play.  Tension was high.  Tempers flared.  The heat in the building came from sources other than the lack of sufficient air conditioning.  The sweat dripping beneath my dress was due to more than just the temperature, though.  As I stood before a crowd of over 400 (might as well have been 4000) to moderate the meeting, my nerves were on edge. 

But it was worth it.  Though we may not have won the war last night, I think we can claim victory in the battle.  It was enough to hear our school board chairman declare, “This is not a done deal.”

The war is not over by any means.  There are quite a few people who believe the school merger would be a good thing.  And in all honesty, I must admit there would be a few advantages.  However, the overwhelming majority of students and parents at both schools believe those few advantages are not worth the sacrifices.  Too many benefits associated with smaller schools will be lost.

After the meeting, one of the educators pushing for this merger spoke to me.  He said, “Look at it like this.  If this were your home and it’s 50 or 60 years old, and I’m offering to build you a new home.  Wouldn’t you want that?”

My answer: “But your telling me I have to share that new home with another family.  A house does not make a home.”  And a new building does not determine the heart of a school either.

Nita

I haven’t been posting as often as I’d like.  You’ve seen less and less promotional posts on the loops lately.  My MySpace and Facebook friends haven’t received nearly as many comments and Fun Wall posts.  I’ve been absent on many of my favorite chat loops, too.

Why?  I’ve been working to save a school.  I’ve written letters and done research.  I’ve made and distributed flyers.  I’ve talked to the neighbors.  Here’s a copy of my letter to the editor of our local online news site:

It’s been reported several times on radio and television news. Hamilton County Schools Superintendent, Dr. Jim Scales, has made it public that he wants to combine schools in an effort to save money.

We all know that saving money is a good thing. No one wants higher taxes or school fees. But just how much will combining schools save? Dr. Scales can’t tell us. He doesn’t know for sure.

Is it worth the price our children will pay? There is 40 years worth of research and studies indicating that without doubt, small schools are better. Study after study proves that smaller schools are safer, have better academic achievement, promote character development and emotional stability among their students, foster a cohesive sense of community, have lower dropout rates, provide better work environments for teachers, and increase public confidence and parent satisfaction.

So why would we combine two or three smaller schools into one big one? Supposedly it would save money. However, we have no figures to prove it, and there are studies that indicate small schools may be more cost effective than their larger counterparts when you factor in reduced expenses due to disruptive behavior, violence, and vandalism.

We have no proof it will save money. However, there is an enormous amount of evidence that smaller schools are better. Better schools make better communities. Better communities keep our property values higher. Are we, the public, willing to gamble on the idea that we might save some money by combining schools when there is a very real possibility of harming our community and devaluing our property?

Currently the debate is over combining McBrien Elementary (483 students) with East Ridge Elementary (312 students.) East Ridge Elementary must be replaced. It’s almost 70 years old and in terrible condition. Dr. Scales wants to build the replacement school large enough to house McBrien’s students and close McBrien.

Information reported in the Times Free Press indicates it would cost $22 million to do that. To replace East Ridge Elementary would only cost around $16 million. Minor cosmetic repairs to McBrien to, among other things, increase energy efficiency would cost about $2.9 million according to the article. So it would actually cost ‘more’ to combine the schools.

Keeping McBrien, a school that is in good condition with good test scores, good parental involvement and a wonderful reputation, is actually the less expensive choice.

Why should you be concerned? McBrien and East Ridge Elementary are only the beginning. There are 16 other elementary schools in Hamilton County with less than 400 students. Lookout Mountain Elementary is almost 80 years old with only 176 students. Is it next on Dr. Scales’ list of schools to be combined with another? Will the property value of Lookout Mountain residents decline if their new, larger school can’t produce the quality learning environment their current school does? Soddy Elementary is almost 70 years old with only 306 students. Are Soddy residents ready to have their school closed? What about Hillcrest (261 students) or DuPont (230 students)? Both schools are aging. Both could be on the chopping block.

I would urge all Hamilton County taxpayers to contact their school board representative. Tell them you want to keep your smaller, better schools.

Right now, many Hamilton County residents can’t be bothered with the concerns voiced by East Ridge residents over the forming of a mega school in their community. They can’t be inconvenienced to take a few minutes to contact their school board member and voice their opposition. Be warned. If East Ridge fails to stop this merger due to the lack of support from others in Hamilton County, your school could be next.

As you can see, I feel quite strongly that our local superintendent is making a mistake in his efforts to consolidate smaller schools into larger ones.  Before you ask– No.  My children do not currently attend either school.  My daughter is now in college and my son will be a junior in high school this fall.  I’m doing this for the principle of the matter.  All kids deserve a good school.  All kids deserve the additional individualized attention available at smaller schools. 

Anyway… Much of the time I usually spend on writing and related activities has been spent on this community fight to save our school.  The big showdown is tomorrow night.  A community meeting has been called.  I’ll be there.  And I do not plan to allow the superintendent or our county commissioner to tell me they know what’s best for our community.  They work for us.  We pay their salary.  They’d best remember that.

We may not win this fight.  But I can promise you that we’ll go down swinging. 

Very soon I hope to report back with a post of “Victory.”  In the meantime, the regularly scheduled program has been interrupted for this community service bulletin. 

Nita 

I haven’t been posting as often as I’d like.  You’ve seen less and less promotional posts on the loops lately.  My MySpace and Facebook friends haven’t received nearly as many comments and Fun Wall posts.  I’ve been absent on many of my favorite chat loops, too.

Why?  I’ve been working to save a school.  I’ve written letters and done research.  I’ve made and distributed flyers.  I’ve talked to the neighbors.  Here’s a copy of my letter to the editor of our local online news site:

It’s been reported several times on radio and television news. Hamilton County Schools Superintendent, Dr. Jim Scales, has made it public that he wants to combine schools in an effort to save money.

We all know that saving money is a good thing. No one wants higher taxes or school fees. But just how much will combining schools save? Dr. Scales can’t tell us. He doesn’t know for sure.

Is it worth the price our children will pay? There is 40 years worth of research and studies indicating that without doubt, small schools are better. Study after study proves that smaller schools are safer, have better academic achievement, promote character development and emotional stability among their students, foster a cohesive sense of community, have lower dropout rates, provide better work environments for teachers, and increase public confidence and parent satisfaction.

So why would we combine two or three smaller schools into one big one? Supposedly it would save money. However, we have no figures to prove it, and there are studies that indicate small schools may be more cost effective than their larger counterparts when you factor in reduced expenses due to disruptive behavior, violence, and vandalism.

We have no proof it will save money. However, there is an enormous amount of evidence that smaller schools are better. Better schools make better communities. Better communities keep our property values higher. Are we, the public, willing to gamble on the idea that we might save some money by combining schools when there is a very real possibility of harming our community and devaluing our property?

Currently the debate is over combining McBrien Elementary (483 students) with East Ridge Elementary (312 students.) East Ridge Elementary must be replaced. It’s almost 70 years old and in terrible condition. Dr. Scales wants to build the replacement school large enough to house McBrien’s students and close McBrien.

Information reported in the Times Free Press indicates it would cost $22 million to do that. To replace East Ridge Elementary would only cost around $16 million. Minor cosmetic repairs to McBrien to, among other things, increase energy efficiency would cost about $2.9 million according to the article. So it would actually cost ‘more’ to combine the schools.

Keeping McBrien, a school that is in good condition with good test scores, good parental involvement and a wonderful reputation, is actually the less expensive choice.

Why should you be concerned? McBrien and East Ridge Elementary are only the beginning. There are 16 other elementary schools in Hamilton County with less than 400 students. Lookout Mountain Elementary is almost 80 years old with only 176 students. Is it next on Dr. Scales’ list of schools to be combined with another? Will the property value of Lookout Mountain residents decline if their new, larger school can’t produce the quality learning environment their current school does? Soddy Elementary is almost 70 years old with only 306 students. Are Soddy residents ready to have their school closed? What about Hillcrest (261 students) or DuPont (230 students)? Both schools are aging. Both could be on the chopping block.

I would urge all Hamilton County taxpayers to contact their school board representative. Tell them you want to keep your smaller, better schools.

Right now, many Hamilton County residents can’t be bothered with the concerns voiced by East Ridge residents over the forming of a mega school in their community. They can’t be inconvenienced to take a few minutes to contact their school board member and voice their opposition. Be warned. If East Ridge fails to stop this merger due to the lack of support from others in Hamilton County, your school could be next.

As you can see, I feel quite strongly that our local superintendent is making a mistake in his efforts to consolidate smaller schools into larger ones.  Before you ask– No.  My children do not currently attend either school.  My daughter is now in college and my son will be a junior in high school this fall.  I’m doing this for the principle of the matter.  All kids deserve a good school.  All kids deserve the additional individualized attention available at smaller schools. 

Anyway… Much of the time I usually spend on writing and related activities has been spent on this community fight to save our school.  The big showdown is tomorrow night.  A community meeting has been called.  I’ll be there.  And I do not plan to allow the superintendent or our county commissioner to tell me they know what’s best for our community.  They work for us.  We pay their salary.  They’d best remember that.

We may not win this fight.  But I can promise you that we’ll go down swinging. 

Very soon I hope to report back with a post of “Victory.”  In the meantime, the regularly scheduled program has been interrupted for this community service bulletin. 

Nita 

Congratulations to all the winners
of the Mother’s Day Contest!
Two entries were chosen for my prizes.

The winner of the $5 Freya’s Bower Gift Certificate is:

Stephanie B

The winner of the ebook of In the Gloaming is:

Linda G

Please visit the participating sites for more winners:

Corinda
Bess McBride
Heather Hiestand
Phyllis Marie Campbell
Denise Belinda McDonald
Jannine Corti Petska
Anna Kathryn Lanier
Skhye Moncrief
Donna Michaels
Sky Purington
Kyann Waters
 

Nita

I got the new cover for my western!  It will be a little while before it’s available, but I’m excited and I had to share.

Isn’t it cool?

Nita

To all you wonderful mothers out there…

I hope you have a perfect day.

Nita

I’ll be drawing two names from my Newsletter mailing list two receive the free ebook of their choice, How Faerie Dust is Made or In the Gloaming-An Anthology of Faerie Stories.

Visit my web site at www.nitawick.com to sign up for my Newsletter!

Nita

20% Discount!

Freya’s Bower is offering a 20% discount coupon for account members who are also signed up for the store newsletter and purchase more than $3.25 in ebooks. If you already have an account, just sign up for the newsletter. You can sign into your account here, or create a new one. You can use the coupon as many times as you like until May 31st.

My wonderful friend, Andrea, has posted an interview with me on her blog, Write Life of Andrea & Corrina - Chicks of Characterization.

Stop by and leave a comment for a chance to win an ebook  of How Faerie Dust is Made! 

Nita