The Education Viewpoint is a monthly column written in rotation by the Allegan County Public Schools Superintendents. This article is not the opinion of all the superintendents or of this website.
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Education: Monumental Challenge & Opportunity |
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Written by Susan Wakefield, Plainwell Community Schools Superintendent
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Tuesday, 19 May 2009 |
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Our children’s educational experience will not be what we experienced. Public education has changed dramatically in the past five years as districts strive to meet the federal and state requirements, and I believe it will change even more in the next five. Like most organizations in our State, public education is reassessing how it does business. This isn’t due to any flash of genius or philanthropic surge; it’s due to the economic reality that we need to improve our quality of education if our students are to be competitive in the job market, and we need to do so in the face of declining revenues. It’s a monumental challenge, some would say a crisis. But all challenges hold opportunities and sometimes our best thinking comes during a crisis. The question is how do we ensure that all our students are successful during their K-12 school years and beyond? |
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Sometimes to Move Forward We Need To Look Back |
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Written by Dirk Weeldreyer, Fennville Superintendent
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Wednesday, 11 February 2009 |
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I love Michigan. I love the serenity of its wilderness areas and the wide expanses of the Lake Michigan shore. I love the cultural opportunities of its cities and the rich diversity of its people. I even love the Detroit Lions. And while our state’s not winless, it does seem like we’ve been on a Lions-esque losing streak for the last three decades. We’ve endured plant closings and the struggles of the Big Three. Many are leaving the state looking for work and our property values are stagnant. So how do we break out of that mold? How can we turn our state around? |
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Written by Greg Alexander, Martin Superintendent of Schools
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Wednesday, 10 December 2008 |
With the holiday season upon us it is a fitting time to reflect on what we have, what we are, and what we hope to be. Especially Thanksgiving season is an appropriate time of year for reflection, as it awakens one’s memories of Thanksgivings past that to a certain extent, form the basis for what we as a people are today. It is the time of year to contemplate all those things for which we give thanks.
Our schools and communities give thanks for the many volunteers that give of themselves to ensure the quality education and supervision we all desire for our children. Those volunteers accomplish so much for us all, and do it without pay, and without extrinsic reward of any kind. The spirit of volunteerism is an essential component of ensuring success and achievement for our youth that often goes unrecognized. |
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Written by Kevin Harness, Allegan Public Schools Superintendent
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Thursday, 14 February 2008 |
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Education, and specifically K-12 public education, is increasingly the topic of conversation and debate in many arenas. Whether it is the presidential campaign mantra, the Governor’s State of the State address, or just a friendly conversation among us common folk at the local coffee shop, the hands on the clock rarely move too far before the subject of educating today’s youth enters the conversation. The economy and the war in Iraq may top the debate charts, but for many, education is not a too distant third. I, for one, believe it is healthy for education to be such a frequent topic of discussion. After all, don’t we learn by listening and sharing our ideas with others? Isn’t our discussion and debate itself a form of education? What more impactful topic is there to discuss than the success or failure of our American educational system? |
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Written by Eivor Swan, Superintendent, Wayland Union Schools
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Tuesday, 23 October 2007 |
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At a dinner party when guests were sitting around the table discussing life, one man, a CEO, decided to explain the problem with education. He argued, “What’s a kid going to learn from someone who decided his best option in life was to become a teacher?” He reminded the other dinner guests what they said about teachers: “Those who can do. Those who can’t, teach.” To stress his point he said to another guest: “You are a teacher, Jim. Be honest. What do you make?” Jim, who had a reputation for honesty and frankness replied, “You want to know what I make? (He paused for a second, and then began…) |
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