Fairbanks schools are under attack
Well, it's March and so foundational programs are about to be cut from our schools. Music, art, and librarians are all on the chopping block. It is folly.
In Kyiv there is a young woman named Illia Bondarenko who defiantly and beautifully plays the violin in a fallout shelter. I would like to posit that this is precisely why we need music and art in our schools. Yes, the disciplines and practice of art and music improve cognition in myriad ways and encourage creativity. But, more than that, they are essential in that the arts are about what is vital to us as human beings. Illia plays her violin in the midst of absolute horror and it speaks to all of us across the globe. We cannot remove this from our schools and expect everything to come out ok.
Similarly, we cannot eliminate secondary librarians who coordinate lessons, support curriculum, help develop habits of reading and seeking information, teach technology, and provide learning space for students. They manage collections according to principles, mandates, and building needs. Significantly they are our last line of defense against those school board members who would eagerly ban books and have begun to inspect our libraries to find books they can object to.
What is happening here is that Fairbanks schools are under attack from a group of board members (April Smith, Matt Sampson, and Maggy Matheson) who do not believe in the entire enterprise of public education, and who apparently wish to have schooling be part of a theocracy of their design. I cannot stress enough how disingenuous it is to run for a seat on the school board for the sake of undermining schools. Their heinous efforts include dismantling essential programs, fighting public health measures, closing Title 1 neighborhood schools to open a homeschool building, irresponsibly plotting against the foundations of our education system via social media posts, and disrespecting teachers and staff.
I urge everyone in Fairbanks to speak out against the proposed music, art, and librarian cuts.
Carrie Nas, Fairbanks
