Letters to the Editor

Updated: May 20, 2012 8:03AM

All in the timing

I am disappointed by the comments of School Board member Jerome Summers in your March 29 issue. Mr. Summers essentially told the affluent wards north of the canal: “Shame on you” for voting against the District 65 referendum.

I don’t live in one of those wards. I voted against the referendum for several reasons: Can our community afford a new school? Have other alternatives been adequately vetted? Why was the new school proposal bundled with the middle-school renovations?

I am in favor of neighborhood schools. In another economic environment and with more vocal community support, I would have voted “yes.” However, our current reality includes massive local pension obligations and a state that wants to punt unfunded pensions back to local school districts.

I also ended up believing that this new school initiative was overly political. The bundling of the new school with the middle school renovations was unnecessary.

I don’t appreciate the way that this referendum was handled. I hope that the School Board takes a long and hard look at its mission and code of ethics, and adjusts its approaches accordingly.

Bonnie Schindler

Evanston

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