Grown-ups Decide, Children Pay

To the Editor:

On Tuesday evening, I joined many parents across our town at Reed Intermediate School for Parent Orientation. There, we had the opportunity to learn firsthand about the social and academic transition that our fourth grade children would be making in just a few short months.

After meeting as a community, we had the opportunity to break into smaller groups and visit the classrooms to learn, in greater detail, about the academic curriculum. It was during this part of the evening that it became increasingly apparent how significantly impacted the Reed educational program is by the current budget situation.

Repeatedly, parents asked seemingly benign questions about available learning and enrichment opportunities. Repeatedly, we were politely told that the availability of many of these programs was yet to be confirmed. The implication was very clear. Unless sufficient funds are made available to the schools, numerous educational services are at risk to be eliminated. The victims of these grown-up decisions are not the taxpayers, but the children of our community.

Joanna Rosen

15 Berkshire Road, Sandy Hook                                                                     May 30, 2012