The Hole in One

In my first class as a high school student I had a social studies teacher who started out the school year with a pretty cheesy ice breaker. He had this list of items on a piece of paper and told everyone in the class that they had to find someone else in the room that matched an experience on the list. I can vividly recall scanning the list and seeing that one of the items was, 'hit a hole in one on the golf course'. Looking around the room at the rest of my freshmen classmates, I knew that none of us had ever done such a thing. Why on earth was something like this even on the list of paper? And then for that matter, why were we even doing this? I had known and grown up with all of these people for what, going on 10 years by now?

Obviously as a  dense fourteen year old it took a few extra moments for it to click. There could only be one person in the room with this type of accomplishment. To this day I am uncertain if Mr. Newland was bragging about his prowess on the golf course or if he was truly breaking the ice and letting us all know he had a passion for golf. (I found out that spring Mr. Newland was also the golf coach so it started to make a bit more sense.) I am not a golfer but people who know more about it than I do continue to tell me it's a pretty big deal to hit a hole in one.

That afternoon not only did I learn Mr. Newland was an avid golfer (and quite good at it (or so he says)), but I also learned he was genuinely interested in getting to know all of us. As those four years went by I recall he also had quite a sense of humor! I can also remember from those early introductory classes Mr. Newland telling us that if he ever started out a sentence with the phrase, "I would remember...." there was a very good (well 100%) chance that little tidbit was going to be on the next test. I went on to take every single class Mr. Newland taught, even an elective course most high school student where I came from simply dreaded: Economics. Truth be told, I wasn't really a stellar student; but I loved this teacher. And he loved his students. He had a passion for his content and an uncanny way of making the material both interesting and accessible. He also carried around this cheap black plastic briefcase that we always used to wonder, 'what does he carry around in that thing'.

Well you all know what happened to me. I went on to become a music teacher. That in part because of the guidance of my music teachers. They were great too, and I have also spoken of them with you here in this very column. What you don't know is that I also contemplated becoming a social studies teacher. Times haven't changed all that much from then to now in terms of the job market for social studies teachers, which could be one of the reasons I chose the route I did. Nevertheless, Mr. Newland instilled in me a deep appreciation and love for history, civics, and government. If you don't believe me, just ask my wife Ann. Many of our vacations center around history, touring battlefields, old houses, and many, many museums.

For all the parents and grandparents out there, can you remember one of your childhood teachers? I'll bet you can recall a favorite teacher or two in your life and perhaps can think if a fun memory of your time in that classroom. I would encourage you to share that memory with your own children and ask them about their teachers.

The point in all this is that we have those teachers right here in our school district. They are connecting with students daily, getting to know them, nurturing them along, and providing sage advice whenever it is appropriate to do so. There must never be any doubt our teachers are helping to mold the minds of your children, who will be our future superintendents, teachers, doctors, and societal leaders. So, when you get a chance during this teacher appreciation week please thank your child's teacher for the work they do on a daily basis on behalf of our community--and for your child. 

Sine Die

Sine Die is the Latin phrase meaning 'to adjourn an assembly for an indefinite period'. Frankly, it is a date that we have looked forward to from the moment the legislature graveled in this past January. That is partially because we spend about as much time advocating for new legislation as we do trying to prevent bad ideas from becoming law! There was plenty of both this year. This first session of the 88th general assembly adjourned 'Sine Die' this past Saturday, April 27th. They were actually able to complete their work a bit early, since the legislators' per diem wasn't scheduled to run out until May 3rd. Nonetheless, as far as legislative sessions go, this one was relatively pain free and productive. Last July, our Board of Directors identified 4 priority areas in which to focus their advocacy efforts. Now that the dust is beginning to settle, we can take stock of how our efforts fared.

Topping the list was the repeal of the 2029 sunset on the statewide penny. You have all heard me talk about the importance of extending SAVE beyond 2029 for the last couple of years, so this all should sound familiar. The SAVE is critically important for school districts because it provides a dedicated funding stream to address facility and infrastructure needs. Whether a district has stable, decreasing, or increasing enrollment; all have infrastructure that needs to be addressed. Absent this revenue source, schools are limited in their ability to repair, build, or renovate schools. Usually the only option is to pass a bond issue, which is often easier said than done. Hudson schools are a great example of a community that has leveraged SAVE in a way that will pay dividends for future generations of students, particularly since our district is poised for growth. Phase III, currently under construction wouldn't be possible without SAVE funds. Further, we know that right around the corner another project will be waiting. Just like a homeowner, our work will never be done. Fortunately this year the sunset was lifted and SAVE was extended to 2051.

A close second in terms of priorities of the board was to ensure a timely and adequate funding package for K-12 education. The final decision on this came on February 13th when the legislature boosted base funding for schools by 2.06%. The term 'adequate' is most certainly subjective and depends on where you live in the state and what your enrollment is doing. Certainly we would have welcomed (and did) advocate for a greater amount, but we'll take it! For Hudson, this meant a boost in base funding of $188,647. This early decision enabled us to move quickly in setting the FY 2020 budget, finishing our contract negotiations with teachers relatively quickly, and getting our faculty and staff in place for 2019-2020. We'll take more of that next year please!

As I stated above, part of our advocacy efforts include preventing bad ideas from becoming law, which is what our third priority focused on: ensuring any choice legislation remains under the sole authority of the school board. The point we are making here, and will continue to make is that any type of funding program that siphons money away from public schools will be resisted. Again this year we saw proposals from both the House and Senate that would institute voucher programs. Fortunately they lack support at this time in both chambers to advance. That doesn't mean they won't be back again next year to take another run at it, because they most certainly will. We will just have to remain vigilant as far as this effort is concerned.

Rounding out our top four is advocacy to increase the current funding for preschools students from .5 to 1.0. Many preschools in Iowa operate half day programs, which is what we operate here in Hudson. Although a relative newcomer to the statewide voluntary preschool program, we certainly can see the value in a full day option, which would be feasible if the funding level was increased for this program. There is no doubt this would be a very heavy legislative lift! If you noticed, it would require a doubling of the funding level for preschool programming. Believe me, we are not wearing rose colored glasses so have a full understanding of the challenges with this proposal. Nevertheless, we do take note preschool funding is getting some positive attention. A proposal to provide funding for five year old students did gain some traction, but unfortunately the legislature simply ran out of time. Basically what this would have done is address a 'gap year' that sometimes happens when a four year old attends preschool for one year but isn't quite ready for kindergarten yet. The way it works now is that those students can attend preschool a second year, but have to pay tuition. I anticipate this will come up again next session and stands a fair chance of gaining approval.

In the final analysis, K-12 public schools fared well. While we certainly didn't get everything accomplished we had hoped for and had to make some concessions and compromises on some issues, we definitely moved efforts forward. We can breathe easy for now: the next session is eight months away!