more haranguing regarding the schools,vaguely responding to DW (fwd)

[Michael Cantrell <macantr@uidaho.edu>]

This is a letter from my wife, Janice Boughton, who is not subscribed to
Vision2020 but asked me to forward her letter to the group.

Mac Cantrell

---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Thu, 30 May 2002 20:39:39 -0700
From: Janice Boughton <janice.bough@stanfordalumni.org>
To: macantr@uidaho.edu
Subject: more haranguing regarding the schools,vaguely responding to DW

I think it would be very nice if I could put my children in a Unitarian school
where they could learn all the values of diversity, ethics, caring for the
environment, etc, etc. as well as receiving a wonderful classical and modern
education, the likes of which would be emulated far and wide.  It would also,
despite its high quality, be affordable for underprivileged kids, and maybe it
could include people of different beliefs, too, so my kids could really
practice what they learn about the acceptance of diversity.  But it's not
going to happen.  There aren't enough resources to make it happen.  And there
would be quite a learning curve too, as we learned to set up a school, during
which my pieschool in the sky would be just plain lousy.

Public schools evolved to be the way they are because of needs and resources
available, and through the hard work of visionaries such as Mr. Wilson and
myself, who wanted, and want the best for their children.  And much like
evolution of biological species, the process continues.  Input from people
like Mr. Wilson, Mr. Danahy and our own teachers and students and parents will
continue to shape these schools to be the best they can be.  I've been as
happy with my kids' public school experience as my sister has been with her
many choices of private, semiprivate, charter, etc. schools available to her
in Seattle.  There are many exciting ideas in these different types of
schools, and I hope that by being involved in the schools, I will see them
become part of our public schools.

I haven't heard anybody who is of the "government school" typing variety
expain how we are going to actually educate our diverse, and not universally
wealthy population in our perfect and selective and always above average
Unitarian and Christian and Catholic and Secular Humanistic and Bahai and
Sufi.... schools.

Humorlessly, Janice Boughton


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