Topics: Middle school exodus; need for more charter schools;
Obama administration protecting environment
Parents should think twice before jumping ship from a middle school
Dear Editor,
I just want to say I wish more parents would think twice before “jumping ship” from a middle school.
My son was a Gifted and Talented Program student at Rucker Elementary School and everyone sneered at the thought of me sending him to South Valley Junior High Middle School.
He has been in advance placement classes and has some great teachers at South Valley.
With the exception of a “usual” 13-year-old’s attitude and seeking attention, he is doing fine at South Valley and I have NO regrets about sending him there.
Josie Z. Bravo, parent of 7th grader
What Gilroy needs is more charter schools and options for parents
Dear Editor,
How about vouchers for charter schools within Gilroy? If my research is correct, I don’t believe we have any charter schools within Gilroy nor do we have a voucher program.
The research I have done regarding charter schools is that those schools are rather impressive and attractive for parents who want a better education for their kids and a safer environment for their kids to learn in.
Per the statistics I have found, a student attending a charter school is cheaper than using vouchers than the same student attending a public school.
In Washington D.C., for example, a voucher for one student is $7,500 for the year and for one student in public school it costs $15,000. There you save $7,500 in taxpayer money, attend a much better school, provide a safer environment for the student and give parents back a sense of choice and control over their children’s education. Also, the teachers seem to get paid better with very competitive benefits.
It also seems that parents and the students are much more invested in their education at charter schools and enjoy a much safer environment. I just don’t see why charter schools and the voucher system get such a bad “rap”.
I look further to future articles in the Dispatch regarding this issue.
FYI, I’ve had it with the San Jose Mercury newspaper. I’ll be subscribing here shortly to the Dispatch. I look forward to some balanced reporting with non-editorialized articles. Please focus on facts and not the political winds of the moment. We do not need “PC” or reporting from behind the computer. Get out there, research, fact check and ask good truth-seeking questions. We don’t need “If it bleeds, it leads.” You guys have the talent and I believe you have the humility to report with integrity. Keep up the good work.
Rubens Dalaison, Gilroy
Editor’s note: Gilroy has one charter school, El Portal Leadership Academy. The school board is currently considering revoking the school’s charter.
New administration isn’t letting oil and gas industry rule public lands
Dear Editor,
Since taking office in January, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar has prioritized renewable energy, put the brakes on the Bush administration’s full-steam-ahead approach to destructive oilshale development and cancelled oil and gas leases on the edge of Utah national parks and historic sites on nearby public land.
Yet Salazar’s measured approach has provoked a backlash by the oil and gas industry that had enjoyed a privileged status during the eight years of the Bush administration.
Secretary Salazar’s understanding that he is a steward of our public lands and not the servant of the oil industry is a breath of fresh air. With the Obama administration placing conservation and renewable energy issues high on its agenda, these first steps should be the first of many more towards the reforms needed to make sure the oil and gas industry doesn’t wreck more of our fragile western landscapes.
Secretary Salazar should continue the agency’s shift from giving the oil industry what it wants to insisting on balance on lands that belong to everyone.
Martyn Phillips, Gilroy
