Letter to the Editor: (sent 02/15/24)
The Board of the Beloit League of Women Voters is supportive of the school referendum that will be on the ballot on April 2nd. This position is in line with the Wisconsin League of Women Voters' positions on adequate financial support for public schools in our state. By stating this position we in no way want to discourage debate or discussion concerning the referendum or the current state of the School District of Beloit. Indeed we call on all parts of our community – businesses, civic organizations, governmental bodies, and faith communities - to be engaged in learning about and understanding, the challenges, the shortcomings, the successes as well as the gaps and barriers that we as a community have with our public schools. Test scores, absenteeism, and behavioral issues grab our attention, but do we listen to more than the outrage?
Lack of transportation to and from schools for students isn’t just the student’s problem, it’s a community problem. Lack of stable and secure housing isn’t just a problem for our schools, it’s a community problem. Do we listen to the reality of over 500 students classified as homeless? Do we listen to the complaints of students and parents about the lack of transportation to get to school? Do we listen to the testimonies of some of our student-athletes who endure racist taunts at other schools, and plead for people to show up in the stands and support them? Do we listen to reports on health challenges, especially mental health challenges, that our students, their families, and school faculty and administration are facing?
Thomas Friedman, the New York Times foreign affairs columnist, recently wrote a piece about “listening.” It was a “mea culpa” piece in response to the blowback he received from an earlier piece where he used questionable metaphors in describing the current Middle Eastern situation. He stated, “I found over the years that it was amazing what people would let me say to them, write about them or ask them about — if they thought that I respected them. And if they thought that I didn’t respect them, I could not tell them the sky was blue. And the way they perceived respect, first and foremost, was if you listened — not just waited for them to stop talking — but deep listening. One can never do that enough as a columnist, reporter or reader — especially today.” It was his way of saying, “I hear you.” to his critics.
The district recently announced four informational sessions on the operational referendum to be held in February and March. Can the community of Beloit show up, and show that we respect one another by listening? Can we listen to the families that don’t have safe or secure shelter, reliable transportation, and access to essential health care? Can we listen to what the district is doing to address the challenges it and we are facing? Showing respect, and listening is the needed start that could lead to community engagement and support of our schools, our children and youth, and those who work on the front lines in our schools to educate and instill our children and youth with values and character. Values and character are more often caught than taught. Can we as a community model the value of showing respect and the character of thoughtful listening as we prepare to make intelligent votes on April 2?
Steve Howland, Board member of the Beloit League of Women Voters