The Coshocton County Beacon February 26, 2020 | Page 8

8 • The Beacon
February 26, 2020
Vote yes for RV, invest in Vote yes in support of RV
our kids and community
Letter to the Editor:
Why support the River
View District tax levy on
March 17? No one wants to
pay additional taxes. Are
there any considerations?
Maintaining a school sys-
tem is very challenging.
Let’s face it: No one
wants to pay additional
taxes. In the future addi-
tional tax dollars also may
have to suppor t pr ivate
schools too. Reports sug-
gest Tr ump is cur rently
touting his school choice
a g e n d a . W h i l e s c h o ol
ch oic e i s p e r s o n a l , d o
you feel comfortable pay-
ing for both private and
public schools? At th is
time perhaps passing the
lev y won’t be so bad if
the school choice agenda
continues to be on Trump’s
radar.
A r e t h e r e c o n s i d e r-
ations? Lack of suppor t
may affect our local econ-
omy. How? A company or
business may be reluctant
to consider an area where
school support is lacking.
At one ti me Coshocton
County was thriving, but
like many other areas, it
is struggling even though
Trump states our econo-
my is great. Good jobs are
needed in this area, another
good reason to support this
levy.
Maintaining a school
syst e m is ch a l le ng i ng.
Not all individuals will be
pleased with decisions or
actions made by the board,
administration or staff, but
they can attend meetings
and provide input. Hav-
ing a very diverse school
population requires spe-
cialized personnel, as well
as many other trained indi-
viduals. While educational
programming is the main
focus in the school setting,
there also are many social
issues. Can we afford to
cut staff and continue to
ensure a safe and secure
school environment? John
Dewey, an American phi-
losopher, psychologist and
educational reformer, said
when there is turmoil in
society, there is turmoil in
the school setting.
Not passing this levy
will result in a reduction
of staff. Not only will edu-
cational programming be
greatly affected, but also
the safety of students and
school personnel may be
jeopardized. Supporting
t h is lev y, st udent s a nd
staff in the district will be
a great investment in our
community.
M.J. Ames
Fresno
Call 330.674.2300 for more info.
Wish her a
Happy Birthday
with a
Warm Fuzzy
ad in The
Bargain Hunter!
Letter to the Editor:
As River View voters
go to the polls to vote on
the lev y to raise money
to replace the money lost
through the closing of the
AEP power plant, I encour-
age them to consider the
long-term effect their deci-
sion will have on our stu-
dents, our school district
and our community.
We know what the short-
term effect will be as out-
lined in the cuts that have
been provided by the school
district. These include fewer
teachers, resulting in larger
class sizes at the elementary
level; fewer class options at
the high school, caused by
the loss of one Vo Ag teach-
er, one English teacher, one
social studies teacher and
one foreign language teach-
er; increased pay to partici-
pate; doing away with one
district PE teacher, one art
position, one music position
and one gifted intervention
specialist; and several other
cuts.
Even more cuts will have
to be made next year in
order to balance the budget.
For more news...
These are only the short-
term effects. The long-term
effects will be more tragic.
We currently have what
I call a winning school dis-
trict, one in which we have
produced students who have
went on to become outstand-
ing citizens in our commu-
nity and around the world.
It is a district people want
to send their students to and
more importantly a place
where people want to work.
RV has been able to hire
the best teachers because
they know they are going
to be working in a district
that is considered one of the
best. If this levy fails, that
will change. The limited
supply of teachers has made
the hiring and retaining of
teachers very competitive.
Just like Indian’s all-star
shortstop Francisco Lin-
dor said in a recent article,
being on a winning team is
more important than money.
A school district can have
the most up-to-date technol-
ogy and the best classroom
programs, but if they do not
have good teachers, the job
of preparing our students
for the future will not get
done. In school systems per-
sonnel is the most impor-
tant factor. If RV starts los-
ing their good teachers to
other districts, it will start
a downward spiral that will
be hard to stop. Just like the
Cleveland Browns, it is hard
to make it back to the top
once you start down.
The RV community has
reached a Y in the road.
We can vote no on the levy
a nd st a r t t he decli ne of
our school district, or we
can vote yes and keep RV
School District a winning
district that we can all be
proud of.
So please RV voters con-
sider the long-term effect
when you vote and vote
yes in support of the RV
income-tax levy.
Dan Hothem
Fresno
log on to www.coshoctonbeacontoday.com