To the Editor
Durango Telegraph
Our stories were featured in a Telegraph article a few weeks ago (“Parent Groups Stymied by 9-R; Committees Push School Board, Superintendent for Dialogue; March 24, 2005.)
As community and parent members of the DHS Parent Advisory Committee and College Mesa Neighborhood, we had been frustrated by our unsuccessful attempts for face-to-face conversations with Board Members. However, after the article appeared, the DHS Parent Advisory Committee was invited to join the school board's April 26 work session to talk about ways to improve the flow of communications between citizens and board members. This was a first step in establishing meaningful dialogue between the school board and our community. This is welcome in light of recent events at the high school, such as the non-renewal of welding teacher Padraig Lynch's contract and the lockdown of May 6th.
While we were pleased to read Greg Spradling's apology for the anxiety and fear that was caused by the recent lockdown drill at the high school, we believe the issues that underlie lockdowns and drug/weapon sniffing dog searches are too complex and too important to leave to our school personnel to handle without input from the community.
To help encourage dialogue on this subject, and other issues within 9-R, a new website, http://www.durangoschooltalk.org , is now online as a place for the public to discuss and debate their concerns. It is being developed by us and other individuals who want to see real dialogue occur before decisions are made. Our goal is to work with others to improve the way our community understands and addresses the educational issues that impact our schools and our children. Please check out the site and let the community know what you are thinking.
Sincerely,
Jeff Schell, Carol Grenoble, Cheryle Brandsma, Norm Gottlieb, Deb Heath, and Vickie Gallegos