Dear Editor,
I share teacher Sue Gamm’s perspective and concern about the
Gilroy Unified School District’s position towards the GATE program
(GATE Served Stepchild Status at GUSD, August 19).
Dear Editor,
I share teacher Sue Gamm’s perspective and concern about the Gilroy Unified School District’s position towards the GATE program (GATE Served Stepchild Status at GUSD, August 19). This administration and prior ones have a long history of undermining the success of the self-contained GATE class program at Rucker School, as well as not fully supporting the needs of GATE students throughout the district at all grade levels. It surprises me that a school board member is not aware of this unacceptable situation as there much evidence to prove the case.
When my daughter tested into the GATE program at the end of her second-grade year, I was advised by the director of the GATE program at the time not to move her to the self-contained GATE class at Rucker. Given the director’s position in the district, her expertise in GATE education, and the lack of information regarding the Rucker program, I took her advice on face value. Years later, my student teaching assignment was in a Rucker GATE class. What I discovered was a jewel of a program specifically designed to meet the special needs of the GATE population. I have talked to many parents who chose to stay in GUSD because of what the Rucker program offered their children and know from my own experience the benefits of the self-contained classes. When my second child qualified for GATE, I did not hesitate to choose Rucker.
There are many families with stories similar to mine, but there is additional proof regarding the district’s lack of support for the Rucker program and GATE education. At this year’s open house for perspective GATE students organized by the Rucker GATE staff, neither the district GATE director Marcia Brown, the school’s principal, nor a representative from the district’s Educational Services Department were in attendance to show their support and answer parents’ questions. The annual GATE report presented to the school board recently was a weak one and included no information about how well the district is actually servicing the needs of this particular group of students. No one in the GATE community, including staff, parents, and members of the GATE Advisory Committee were included in the presentation, nor were they even notified that the presentation was taking place.
Families need to make thoughtful decisions regarding their children’s education, and remaining in a neighborhood school may be the correct one for many who have GATE-identified children. My concern is whether district officials are doing a thorough job of educating the parent community about their children’s needs, the different options available in the district, and their support for all of these options. Current evidence and past experiences of many families, including my own, lead to the conclusion that they are not. I applaud the parents who have come forward this year with their experiences regarding the GATE identification process and the problems that have ensued from it. I particularly applaud Rucker teacher Sue Gamm, who has been and always will be an advocate for the needs of GATE students. This kind of advocacy is sorely missing in the district office and among many of our curriculum leaders.
Jackie Stevens, Gilroy
