From Robert Erb
President, Monroe Board of Education
To the editor:
I was disappointed to read Nikki Saugstad's comments in the Monroe Times suggesting board members Amy Bazley, Mary Berger, and I are less able to relate to district residents because we aren't in the appropriate "socio-economic bracket." To imply that the three of us lack the proper perspective to serve on the Monroe School Board is uninformed and wrong.
The unfortunate reality is many district families struggle to make ends meet. Nearly half of our students receive free and reduced lunch subsidies due to family incomes near or below the poverty line. This reality makes the quality of their education critical.
I understand this because many years ago, I was a kid from a broken home on free and reduced lunch. My father worked in a factory, Amy Bazley's parents were teachers, and Mary Berger's father was a carpenter. We all went to college and paid for it ourselves with summer jobs and student loans. I know this because, unlike Nikki Saugstad, I know these people and where they came from.
I have faced many of the same challenges some of our kids are up against. Fortunately, I had teachers who didn't care about my situation outside of school, but only cared about getting the most out of me in the classroom. They saw my ability and looked past everything else, and I can never thank them enough for their role in changing my life. My education gave me the ability to open doors, and my best teachers gave me the confidence to walk through them. Because of this, I believe we have both incredible power and responsibility to do what we do, every day, the very best we can, for kids like me.
Our job is to take every student, regardless of their circumstances, and inspire them every day to be better than the day before. Through passion, heart, and hard work, we must hold ourselves relentlessly accountable for the sake of these kids - not to meet unfunded mandates, or to pander to special interest groups. Our students' educations, their futures, are in our hands, and it's up to our entire district to be there for them.
Back in 2006, I thought by serving on the school board, I might be able to help my own kids. What I've learned since then is that helping kids like me is what makes this all worthwhile.
President, Monroe Board of Education
To the editor:
I was disappointed to read Nikki Saugstad's comments in the Monroe Times suggesting board members Amy Bazley, Mary Berger, and I are less able to relate to district residents because we aren't in the appropriate "socio-economic bracket." To imply that the three of us lack the proper perspective to serve on the Monroe School Board is uninformed and wrong.
The unfortunate reality is many district families struggle to make ends meet. Nearly half of our students receive free and reduced lunch subsidies due to family incomes near or below the poverty line. This reality makes the quality of their education critical.
I understand this because many years ago, I was a kid from a broken home on free and reduced lunch. My father worked in a factory, Amy Bazley's parents were teachers, and Mary Berger's father was a carpenter. We all went to college and paid for it ourselves with summer jobs and student loans. I know this because, unlike Nikki Saugstad, I know these people and where they came from.
I have faced many of the same challenges some of our kids are up against. Fortunately, I had teachers who didn't care about my situation outside of school, but only cared about getting the most out of me in the classroom. They saw my ability and looked past everything else, and I can never thank them enough for their role in changing my life. My education gave me the ability to open doors, and my best teachers gave me the confidence to walk through them. Because of this, I believe we have both incredible power and responsibility to do what we do, every day, the very best we can, for kids like me.
Our job is to take every student, regardless of their circumstances, and inspire them every day to be better than the day before. Through passion, heart, and hard work, we must hold ourselves relentlessly accountable for the sake of these kids - not to meet unfunded mandates, or to pander to special interest groups. Our students' educations, their futures, are in our hands, and it's up to our entire district to be there for them.
Back in 2006, I thought by serving on the school board, I might be able to help my own kids. What I've learned since then is that helping kids like me is what makes this all worthwhile.
