Editor,
Even if you don’t have kids going to Hamilton Southeastern schools, please vote yes for the upcoming referendum. Property values are tied to the reputation and health of the school district. The referendum would bring HSE to the state average of funding per pupil for the first time in many years and will reduce class sizes and school fees.
The schools have been surviving on the 2009 referendum. If not passed, all of that revenue from the base referendum will stop. The first year we will lose 50 teachers and three administrators. As a resident of Fishers, who also happens to teach in HSE, I have seen from the inside the many desperate measures that have been put in place to try to keep the district solvent.
I built a house in the district in 2003, choosing Fishers because of the reputation of its schools and community. In 2007, my dream of being able to teach in the district I live in came true. However, the district’s economic situation caused my program to be eliminated that same school year. I am grateful the board was committed to not cutting teachers. Because of this, I was able to keep a job teaching another subject. The process of losing the program was very difficult and I almost left the profession. The other teacher whose program was cut was a teacher of the year and ended up leaving the district.
Please know the schools have already cut deep. Program eliminations and teacher cuts will not help our schools or our community. Please vote yes for the referendum on May 3. It will start to improve our classroom sizes, allow us to hire and keep quality teachers and set in motion a path for a brighter future for our kids.
Nichole Mathews