Dear Source:
I prefer to wake up to an optimistic disposition. After dropping my girls off at their bus stop at 6:30am today – driving to work, and listening to the news – it dampened my spirits to learn of the not so perfect day at Woodson yesterday.
What an embarassment for our Governor, with his good intentions, to be greeted by irate parents and teachers at the school yesterday…. Children with no place to go but home…. That had to be tough.
One has to wonder whose shoulders the responsibility rests on…. is it really the Governor, because he is the head of the Territory? Could it be Dr. Terry, as she has assumed responsibility for our Education system? Is it Mr. Molloy? What of the respective Principals? Teachers? Can our students be held accountable? Do they have a say in the state of their classroom? Who cares? Someone needs to do something! And that something needed to have been done between June and August. Whomever had the final say, needed to have known that the school was not ready….
It was not that long ago, when I was in elementary school, and would work during the summer for a couple of weeks preparing our classrooms, repainting, and doing small repairs, with resources provided by the class itself. (through fundraising) Parents, teachers and the Principal would participate in the renovation effort. If the parents, and the Principal of Woodson were aware of what was being left behind… why wait until August 25th to say the school is not ready? Come on people…. we gotta do better by our children. Now what?
Imagine how fantastic it would have been to have done a little over the summer and your children were able to have a smooth start to the 08/09 school year. Stop looking for someone else to blame…. who really is at fault? Is a shorter day really what we need? It appears that children will be back in the classroom today until noon…. we certainly were not able to repair all issues in one day were we?
In any event, I am truly delighted that there was bus service yesterday – now we just need to have a place for the children to be dropped off to that is safe, clean, cool and conducive to learning… next step is for the teachers to show up!
Nadia Bougouneau
St Croix
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