Target: Growth, safety School bond addressed issues
By STU MERRY
Two of the prime targets that would be addressed if patrons approve a bond issue at Garrison school Tuesday will be the classroom crunch and safety of students and staff.
This past Friday, Garrison School Board member Carl Young addressed Garrison senior citizens at their regular monthly potluck. He said many factors are involved as to why the school is asking voters to approve the bond issue.
Young said it’s not about adding on to both schools just for the sake of adding on – it’s to meet the needs of the future and to meet the needs of the 21st Century student. He said the primary issue is two-fold – a lack of space due to a growing population of students and shortage of space for special education students.
Special needs
Young reminded how differently students are educated now.
"The education that my father received through the 8th grade was enough for the society and time that he grew up in, as well as into adulthood," he said. "Where in the past a college education was deemed a luxury, now it is common place."
Young said the same holds true of special education students. He explained:
"In the past, students who were struggling in school were kept in the regular education classroom, and as a result may have graduated without all of the education that they should have received," he told the group. "The needs of students today are vastly different from those a generation or two ago. The classroom of today is not the same as the classroom of 30, 40 or 50 years ago.
"We need to keep up with the education of our students, so that they can be successful, more proficient and technology aware than we were at that age. A small part of keeping up with their education is ensuring that we have adequate facilities for learning."
Young said he thinks the bond issue’s passage is important.
"If I didn’t believe in this project I would have said ‘no’ – every special needs kid has the right to receive a proper education," he said.
