Time To Support Our Schools

To the Editor:

By the time this letter appears in The Bee, we will know how the Legislative Council decided to act on the 2000-2001 Board of Education budget. They have either cut additional funds or presented it to the taxpayers as it was presented to them.

Either way Support Our Schools is needed now as much if not more than we have been to this point. For those of you who don’t know, Support Our Schools is a political action committee that was formed to educate the public on the immediate need for the 5/6 school, of their role in the budget process, as well as to encourage support of the Board of Education budget. There are still public hearings and the referendum to come. We strongly encourage those of you concerned with quality education to attend these hearings and to vote at the referendum. There is also a long way to go in the 5/6 school process. During the upcoming weeks and months, the informational part of our committee will continue to be active in providing facts and dates the public needs to be active and effective in the budget process and to see the 5/6 school through to the end. However, the action part of the committee is going to step it up as well.

For those of you who don’t know, the Board of Education cut just over $1 million from the proposed budget prior to sending it on to the Legislative Council. The 2000-2001 budget is starting out from behind even if the council made no further cuts. One of the proposed cuts was some badly needed painting in the middle school. Support Our Schools beginning Sunday, March 12, 2000 will be taking on this task to insure it gets done even if it doesn’t make it into the budget.

This is only the beginning of the Support Our Schools Action Committee. Many education supporters have said over the years that we are willing to dig deeper to pay more taxes to provide our Board of Education and our schools what they need to provide our children with a quality education. Support Our Schools will therefore take on projects like the painting mentioned above at all of our schools. We will also increase our fund-raising efforts and use these funds to literally Support Our Schools.

If you are an individual or business and you are interested in making a contribution or if you want more information you can call me at 203/270-7060 or you can write to Support Our Schools at PO Box 3602, Newtown, CT 06470.

Also please contact me if you are a lawyer, an accountant, you have office space available of if you have any service you would be willing to donate to Support Our Schools to assist us in our effort.

Support Our Schools is dedicated to continuing quality education in Newtown. Please call or write today to join us. Don’t forget to check our Web site, www.Supportnewtownschools.com, for upcoming events, meetings and important information concerning Newtown education.

Joe Hemingway

10 Overlook Knoll, Sandy Hook                           March 7, 2000