Your recent focus on charter schools was very interesting and helpful. As the parent of a high school senior who was home-schooled for six years, attended public school, attended Four Rivers (Charter Public School in Greenfield) for two years and will graduate from private school, I have developed a very basic perspective on what it takes to make a school effective.
It is teachers, teachers and more teachers. Not highly-paid teachers. Not highly-educated teachers.
Just solid, passionate people who want to influence young people and who are free to do just that.
Our local icon for this model is Four Rivers Charter Public School. Led by Peter Garbus, Four Rivers is full of passionate teachers free to work their considerable magic.
Therein lies the issue for the rest of the system.
When a teacher finds him or her self in the public schools, is passionate about the job and the young people, has thrown themselves into the work, they inevitably receive the knock at the door.
The shop steward reminds this person that they are part of a community of professionals who work together.
Staying late for extra help, skipping breaks to accommodate students, being accessible to help and encourage are just not part of a smoothly running organization.
Peter and his faculty celebrate results — and they get them.
Instead of trying to find ways to stop charter schools, local administrators would do well to seek every way possible to emulate them.
The need for charter schools would diminish if the public schools were allowed to energize their teachers and free them to do the wonderful work they intended to do when they decided to become teachers.
Curt Hudson
Conway