The budget crisis is complicated, and it is the responsibility of citizens to know its impact on those youngsters in our community who face challenges every day most of us cannot imagine.
— Karen Donovan, Ipswich, Mass. (from Ipswich Chronicle Letter to the Editor, "Budget cuts will end up costing the district," April 2 2008)
A cut of this magnitude will impact everything. . . Once programs are cut, history shows, they never get them back.
— Teacher and Parent, Ipswich, Mass.
The positive effects of a solid education will live on in the children of Ipswich and in who they become as citizens and human beings. This benefits everyone.
— Shelly Greenstein, Ipswich, Mass. (from Ipswich Chronicle Letter to the Editor, "We can't have our cake and eat it, too," March 27 2008)
“Making a Difference Starts Here!” That is the motto of the
— Peter Holtz, 8th Grade ELA Teacher, Ipswich Middle School
Read the rest of Peter Holtz's remarks
One statement that keeps ringing in my ears is one made by Carolyn Davis as she addressed parents and teachers at a FRIES meeting last year. She said, "We all need to remember to KEEP OUR EYES ON THE PRIZE!" The prize being our children. I think that is so important to remember as we go through this school budget process.
It is easy to get bogged down with all of the facts and figures surrounding the budget and the override, but we cannot lose sight of the fact that our children are directly impacted by the decisions of our community. We cannot take for granted that we have happy children who actually enjoy school. These children are thriving under the most extraordinary care and we need to invest in our schools and our teachers in order to keep them happy!!!! Let's keep our eyes on the prize and vote YES!!!!
— Katie Gillis,
At what point do we honestly fess up to the fact that for nearly 10 years we have presided over a systematic dismantling of our most precious resource — and I'm not talking about Crane Beach. That we have been breaking the backs of the very people we need to support the most because we have not made the case for excellent public schools.
...We've been lucky to have such resilient, dedicated, gravity defying professionals in our schools. But our luck is running out. No one is resilient forever. The laws of gravity will eventually take hold. If we don't step up and acknowledge the fact that we usually get what we pay for in this world — even in the world of public services — Ipswich soon will become a place with all of the costs and problems associated with collapsing schools, declining property values and an exodus of citizens who want good schools, safe streets and a profitable place to do business. Good teachers, administrators and staff will leave. Engaged parents will leave. Businesses will leave. It happens in the blink of an eye. And then we'll really be in trouble.
...This spring we're all going to find out where we live and who we are. I hope we're going to find out that we live in a place full of people who will do anything for Ipswich children and for the people who care for them every day. I hope we're going to find out that we live in a place where people work together to tackle difficult issues in an open, inclusive way and that we live in a place where hope and the long view overcome fear and short-sighted self-interest.
— Steve Filosa, Ipswich, Mass. (from remarks made at School and Finance Committees meeting, March 12 2008)
Last year's "bare bones" budget cut to the core of the school. This year's budget — with cuts of such fundamental items as libraries — eats away at the core. We cannot allow this to happen. Weakening the school system will in turn weaken the community. Everyone, whether they have a child in school or not will be affected. EVERYONE.
— Tom Hammond, Ipswich, Mass. (from Ipswich Chronicle Letter to the Editor, "We are all in this budget crisis together," March 27 2008)
Our schools are staring at a tipping point in their budget; once past that point the quality of Ipswich education will decrease at an accelerating rate, with poor prospects of recovery. Good teachers will be fired and will never return. Confidence, credibility and stability are required to run a good school system year in and year out. Twenty-eight children in an elementary classroom is too many, way too many. How far do we push? 35? 45?
...Education is not just an expense of parents for children. It's an investment in the competence of the next generation, to help ensure good government, good jobs and good lives for all of us.
— Chris Cullen, Ipswich, Mass. (from Ipswich Chronicle Letter to the Editor, "Ipswich property tax rate is enviably low," March 27 2008)
The upcoming vote on the override is a test for the adults of Ipswich who, generally speaking, have had it pretty easy in so far as taxes are concerned. Will they uphold the traditional intergenerational contract whereby each generation sacrifices to educate the generation coming after it and to care for the generation that went before it?
I suspect that students will be watching to see if the mystic chain of duty and love that has linked one generation to the next in Ipswich will hold or break. If it is broken, can they help but view themselves as less obliged to uphold their side of the contract?
— Ed Traverso, Ipswich, Mass. (from Ipswich Chronicle Letter to the Editor, April 2 2008)
There is a direct correlation between strong school systems and strong property values. Steve Bailey, the noted business reporter for The Boston Globe, wrote, ". . . a study by the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston shows that communities with the best schools are again showing the best gains in housing prices."
...The decision many people are talking about is if our residents can afford to pay the four or five dollars per week that an override would cost the average homeowner. With the value of our most important assets at stake, perhaps the questions shouldn't be whether we can afford to support the schools but rather can we afford not to.
— Peter Ginolfi, Ipswich, Mass. (from Ipswich Chronicle Letter to the Editor, "Excellent schools increase home values," April 2 2008)
I'm proud to say that I'm a teacher of the Ipswich Public Schools where educational decisions are based on what is best for students.
— Kathy McMahon, Winthrop School, Ipswich, Mass.
