Dan Becker: Coming to Grips with Tradeoffs

The question, as stated, is very difficult to answer. I cannot determine what the community is willing to trade-off in order proceed with the restructuring plan. It depends on who you ask. Someone whose school is closing may not be willing to trade anything, someone whose school isn’t closing may not have anything to trade-off, or someone who is on a fixed income may not be willing to pay higher taxes if there is a referendum to accommodate the cost of restructuring. I cannot answer the question for the community; it would be irresponsible of me to tell someone what they should be willing to trade-off.

I do feel that some people are giving the impression that the older schools in Oshkosh are somehow “a lesser school” just because of their age. A new building DOES NOT make a good school. Good schools are made up of caring people, involved parents, dedicated teachers, hard-working administrators, and most of all students who feel valued, loved, and important. Any building new or old can be that. I believe the public is getting the impression that if something isn’t done right now, the district is destined for disaster. This is not true. Decisions of this magnitude need to be thoroughly investigated, completely researched, creatively thought out, and well planned. I do not think these things have been done. I do not think the public should be asked to even consider forced trade-offs until there is a definite plan with an accurate price tag in place.

Without any concrete information, I can only speculate on the trade-offs, and to do so would be a disservice to the families directly affected, the children impacted, the staff displaced, and the already over burdened taxpayers, in other words, all the members of the community.