To the editor:
I recently sent this to Dr. Elizabeth Domangue and would like to share my thoughts publicly:
Thank you for sharing your thoughts in the Weekly Update for D14 families and the Bulletin. As both a district parent (MSES and MSMS) and a 15-year educator in a neighboring district, I agree with your concerns about the language being used to negatively compare MSSD 14 with Harrison School District 2.
The connotation that Harrison is a disreputable place to be is exactly what you stated: a fear of “the other.” You were right to call this out.
I don’t have the perspective of being a D14 teacher, but I do know two things:
1. My children receive a loving, rigorous and inquiry-based learning experience that has remained consistent since we entered the D14 family seven years ago.
2. Your unique combination of a depth of capacity and approachability are second to none in my professional experience.
To my Manitou community: We seemingly forget that public schools are bound to governmental requirements and regulations. And although a lack of information often leads idle minds to create untrue stories to fill a void, the opportunity for transparency has legal limits. Information is not always an entitlement, especially when minors are involved.
It has become a popular practice to criticize every angle of education. I am intimately familiar with the challenges that face our public schools, both from a state and legislative perspective and a classroom teacher perspective.
But criticism alone WILL NOT lead to improvements, and not all challenges can be directly impacted at a local district level. Please consider responding to frustrations constructively as opposed to posting negative comments on social media and gossiping with neighbors.
If we really want to model productive problem-solving for our children, doing so with a curious and considerate frame of mind will surely result in a healthier and more collaborative community.
Rosanna Czarnecki
