What Are We Voting For?

To the Editor:

We have a wonderful community. It has always been a town where people come together. Whether it is a time of celebration, such as the Labor Day Parade, or a time of tragedy, such as 9/11, or raising money for someone suffering, the people in this town always support each other. This is what makes us proud to be from Newtown.

I’m concerned that this sense of community is faltering when it comes to our budget. This is an important time when people need to come together and support the future of our community. A centerpiece of a great community is a strong school system. Whether or not you have children in school, the community will only thrive if the schools are supported. Everyone in Newtown reaps the rewards of quality schools.

Our school system is at a critical point right now. Programs and services have been lost or compromised and classes have grown larger. There is a great concern that the quality of the schools is eroding. I have had numerous conversations with Bill Bircher, Head O’ Meadow’s principal, who has been in the system and in education for many years. He says, “We are at a crossroads. We cannot sustain our level of services with a budget at this level. What I am afraid of is that what we have worked hard to develop over the last 20 years may evaporate. And I’m concerned that larger classes are becoming more commonplace; we will no longer be able to be a school system that accommodates individual differences. We just won’t have the time. We will land up with assembly-line education.”

Costs are going up for insurance and energy, significant costs that we must unfortunately pay. Regardless of these increased costs, our community cannot let our children become the victims. When we factor out costs that cannot be changed and the projected student enrollment increase, the Board of Education’s budget only asked for an increase of one half of one percent. This is a very responsible amount to ask taxpayers to support.

A successful community comes together and supports the children, who are particularly vulnerable since they cannot vote. We need to support the budget put forth by the Board of Ed. Please do not punish the children and community by simply voting No because you don’t want a tax increase. No one wants an increase, but it is a prudent decision to invest in education. Also, do remember that investing in our schools has paid out handsomely for all property owners. Our real estate values have skyrocketed in the last decade and would not have increased as well as they did if the schools were mediocre.

As we talk about coming together as one, we should also help those that helped build this town, but are now struggling financially to live here. This is another group needing community compassion.

None of us use every service in the town, but without each other we could not buy any of the services that a great community can offer. When we all work together we should be able to provide most of what everyone wants the community to be.

What are we voting for? We are voting to maintain the caring and responsible community in which we will all continue to take pride in. Support the schools and our town’s future by voting Yes for the budget.

Michele Hankin

48 Mt Pleasant Road, Newtown                               April 7, 2004