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What's the rush?

According to our new superintendent of Butler schools, Dr. Dale Lumley, the solution to our district’s issues is to close buildings, eliminate teachers and hopefully save money overall.

Through all of the presentations I have attended in the past few months, I have not heard any good reason to rush this consolidation for next school year.

Politically, Lumley has enough of the current board members on his side to get his agenda passed (which is why it is his “perfect storm”), and he can’t risk waiting until after board elections next fall. It has nothing to do with what is best for the students in this district.

An overwhelming percentage of the attendees — who are primarily not members of the Butler Residents for Quality Education Group — feel that a K-6 configuration is best for our district, based on a paper ballot vote that occurred during the brief public to be heard session. During that same session, parents, teachers and other community members spoke out against the plans that dissolve the K-6 elementary schools.

Everyone who spoke asked the board to slow down, reconsider the schools they want to close, and most of all the effect this will have on our children’s education and development.

The board and administration seemed anything but interested in what the public had to say. There was little eye contact between the speakers and board members, some of them even sat typing on tablet computers as we tried to make them realize there is more to running a district than the money.

Lumley often uses the smug phrase “We hope ...” when he answers questions about this process. The truth is, he has little actual information to base his decisions on. He hopes this saves money; that the numbers of children in charter schools doesn’t grow; the teachers are able to adjust to loading the buildings with more children than they have in 25 years; they can complete construction renovations for a reasonable cost and with quick turnaround; that bus rides don’t exceed 45 minutes, and our children are resilient.

They are quickly making drastic changes to this district on hope.

I can’t speak for the Butler Residents for Quality Schools group, but as a parent of three young children, I am anything but silent on this issue. Slow this decision down. Other than political reasons and hopes of big money savings, there is no justification to dissolve our elementary schools by next fall.

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