Using the 2020-2021 Illinois Report Card data there were 5,989 K-8 students in our district, and 614 students in Dennis school (5,989 – 614 = 5,375). There’s been a lot of good discussion of the pros and cons of building a new school on Facebook (man, I never thought I would say that), and I don’t disagree with most of the arguments both for and against a new Dennis school, but I want to focus on the ethical issue of using 70% (or probably more) of our ESSER funds to benefit a small minority of students. We’ve heard (on Facebook) from Dennis parents, Dennis teachers, and even School Board Members, but where are the angry cries from the rest of the parents in the district demanding what is theirs?
The normal course of events… First a school building falls in disrepair, or the district has outgrown its school room capacity to warrant the construction of a new school building. Next the school district asks the citizens of the district to allow it to issue a bond to pay for the building. And finally, if the referendum passes a bond is issued and the building is built. That’s obviously not what is happening in this case (even putting aside the fact that the current building is arguably in pretty good shape, and we have declining student enrollment.) What has happened is the federal government has given $1.9 trillion to states to (and this is language from the ESSER funding portion)…
“… award subgrants to local educational agencies to address the impact that the Novel Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) has had, and continues to have, on elementary and secondary schools across the Nation.”
I have two problems with designating a large portion of our CARES funds to only 10.3% of the districts K-8 students:
the ethical issue of using funds mandated to address learning loss from covid-19 on (and I’m getting a little flippant here, but) a new school building that will have a better gymnasium. And,
what about the other 5,375 students that don’t attend Dennis?
So, how are we going to spend the nearly $50 million currently allocated for “facility updates” on the How DPS Will Spend CARES Act Funding page if we don’t build a new building? Well first, spending taxpayer money simply because you don’t have anything better to do, is a non-starter. Let’s dig in and do the hard work of determining where we can allocate the money to best help all the students in the district. If you’re able to tell me that every one of our school building’s issues can and will be addressed with the remaining money after building a new Dennis school, I still will have a problem! (See #1 above.) But I’m sure that’s not the case. Five years from now, an old boiler in one of the buildings will need replaced, and classrooms will need painted, and… It’s hard work to identify what needs fixed – but that work must be done. Have each school principal ask all their teachers for lists and have every maintenance worker in the district submit a list of projects that might be needed over the next five years. Get busy now!
But more importantly let’s a least try to address the loss in learning that has occurred over the last year and attempt to use money to hire additional teachers. A new group of teachers which can be brought along slowly, helping with individual student remediation and alleviate the need for full time subs. It’s definitely hard work to hire 100 teachers right now, but let’s try!
Additionally, let’s use money while we have it, to transition to one High School (with two campuses), giving both the top quartile and the bottom quartile of our student body a better chance of success – offering a broader course selection that will only be possible with one school of 2,200 students. This might slow the exodus of families of students at both ends of the educational spectrum who care about their child’s education.
Finally, and Duane and I will have another article on this soon, let’s explore a new Khan Academy (like) experience in our new Decatur High School. This concept is gaining traction across the US where students can work in small pods and progress through course material at their own pace, using the unbelievably vast amount of coursework available on the internet. The small pod system would give the students something that can’t be accomplished from home – providing each with a group of peers to discuss literature, concepts, and events and a platform to verbalize formed opinions. This is part of a trend back towards a true “liberal arts” education that prepares high schoolers for college and life. It’s important to note that this new educational framework will benefit every quartile of students. If it takes a student a year and a half to fully comprehend the concepts of the Algebra X curriculum, then that’s fine – and certainly better than moving on to the next class, never having mastered that last one. If we want to outfit or repurpose rooms in the high schools for this type of learning – now is the time! Let’s create learning centers with internet pods and small discussion spaces in both campuses!
Look… I’m a realist too. Understand that I’m not saying that we turn down $50 million. What I am saying is that it’s not fair to take this money to benefit only a small fraction of our students. Particularly when the benefits, in the broader sense are inconsequential. Or put another way, will replacing the old Dennis school increase the opportunity for success for kids in our district? (It’s hard to make the case that a new school will even increase the Dennis school children’s opportunity of success.) Let’s do the hard work of determining how to help every kid in our district.
Well said and I totally agree.