I love the people and experiences Butler offers. I love living in one of the Top 20 Best Small Towns in America, as ranked by Smithsonian Magazine in 2012. And I am happy to be raising my 7-year-old daughter in the same town and school district that helped me along the way to becoming the person I am today.

With that said, I am saddened that recent discussions on school consolidation in the Butler Area School District have caused divisiveness among parents, teachers, community members and our administration and board of directors. I am disappointed our entire community is not working together to determine what is best for our children and school district. I believe much of the divisiveness is driven by a large degree of unrest and anxiety.

Imagine that your child’s pediatrician, whom you have known and trusted for years, suggests that your child take a new medication for a condition that is currently under control. The medication offers the promise of an improved life, but test results have been mixed and there are some significant side effects. As a parent, what would you do? Would you want some more information? Or would you put your trust and faith solely in your doctor?

Many parents with young children in the disrict are in a similar situation. We are being sold the promise of an improved education for all of our children through a consolidation plan (option 4B, K-4 grade structure) that dramatically reconfigures our elementary grade schools and structure that many of us trust and take comfort in. More important, we have not heard specific details or logic as to how this extensive reconfiguration will help deliver on that promise of improved education. Without a detailed understanding of the criteria used by our board to vote for option 4B, and without a detailed knowledge of how our administration plans to execute it, we are being asked to hope and trust that things will work out for the most important aspects of our lives: our children. We are being asked to take a leap of faith that these large-scale changes will get implemented effectively for the 2015-16 school year.

I am not qualified to determine what educational configuration is best for the children of our district. But I have done enough research on the subject to know that parents and community members, myself included, have a lot of very valid questions on consolidation that remain unanswered. More significant, there are growing concerns among many in the community as their questions remain unanswered. Without detailed evidence of how a split elementary grade structure will benefit our children, I am concerned that our district is pursuing option 4B as a “change for the sake of change” and calling that progress. I am concerned that our board is making a decision based on generalities and anecdotal comparisons with other local school districts, and not a thorough analysis of all financial, educational and utilization data. I am concerned that a “gut decision” is being made without fully knowing all the possible educational and financial benefits and consequences of that decision.

I have no doubt that our administration are very capable educators and administrators and that our board has the best of intentions, considering the education of our children first and foremost. Similar to a family doctor, there is a certain level of trust that each of us with children has in our public school system. And for years, that trust has been rewarded with excellent teachers and wonderful educational programs that parents have embraced. But when we are presented with significant changes to our schools that are sure to impact our children in some way, no parent should be expected to simply trust and act on “blind faith” alone. We want answers to our questions.

There is still time to get this decision right and bring this community back together. I am urging the board and administration to “step off the stage” and discuss their logic and reasoning behind the desire to pursue option 4B. Tell the parents of this community that their children will be OK. Tell us that education is guaranteed to improve from its current baseline for each and every child of BASD, and give us specific examples as to why. Tell us that the savings realized from consolidation will be reinvested back into education, and give us specific examples. Tell us how option 4B will be implemented for the 2015-16 school year without a disruption in educational quality for any child. Please help address all of the legitimate fears and concerns that parents and community members have right now.

If the board and administration cannot address the many concerns of its primary customers, then it is time to seek additional help. It is time to perform additional analysis. It is time to reconsider other consolidation options that will benefit taxpayers and children alike.

The Butler Area School District has served this community well since the 1890s. It is a community that understands the need for fiscal accountability, but also deserves high quality educational programs for its children. I am absolutely certain that any change to our schools — if preceded by solid reasoning; thorough analysis; appropriate justification; and detailed short-term and long-term planning — would be embraced by the community.

I ask our board and administration to please take the necessary steps to ensure that our school district continues to serve our community well for the next 100 years.

Kris Paserba, of Butler is a member of the Butler Parents for Quality Schools.