Thank you Jennifer and many of us share your frustration. I do fully appreciate the significant tax increase the town is facing due to the need for a new middle school. I think the situation we find ourselves in is due to a lack of longer term financial planning as a district. I hope we can learn from this and make changes so this does not occur again.
As a district, not being able to meet the medical recommendations of the CDC and APA related to the health of our children is unacceptable. We would not stand for this as parents if we were advised that their was no budget to ensure vaccines for our children. This isn't a matter of personal opinion, or what we wish for, this is a medical fact, supported by significant science.
As someone who has been involved in this process, I urge people to attend SC meetings and reach out to members. I also ask you to challenge the costs being presented. While we would like additional buses to further reduce student ride time, a change in start time does not require additional buses. The only additional cost necessary to make a healthy start time for our 11-18 year olds is the cost of an extra hour per day per bus of bus monitors. A healthy start time can begin this fall for well under $307.000. Likely a quarter of this amount.
We need to demand healthy start times, which were voted on and approved to begin this fall, backed by medical research, while also being fiscally responsible.
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