This year is even tougher then last, the economy being what it is. It has taken a toll on all of us, and I don't see it getting better any time soon.
School budgets will be voted on in the near future, and I think it is very important that each of us show our support by voting.
As many of you are aware, the state has talked about closing small schools or consolidating them with larger schools for many years. The state has been successful in consolidating a handful of schools over the past several years, but not without a cost to the students and the taxpayers. The cost to the students is longer commutes. The students don't get the individual help that some of them need, and some get lost in the system. Another loss to taxpayers is the large cost of building the new school system. Of course, consolidation puts people out of work, which means in most circumstances they must move away from their family and friends to find another job. The greatest cost is to the community itself. It loses its identity, it loses its biggest employer, and it loses a reason to bring people and business into the community.
But the state is getting smarter because of the flak received because of some of these consolidations in the past. The state is not telling communities to close their schools, but it is cutting funding and placing a cap on spending while instituting unfunded mandates, which makes it very difficult for the schools to maintain programs and continue the quality education they have provided in the past.
If Franklin were to lose its school, it would be devastating to many of us.
I spent 15 years on the Franklin Board of Education and, unless things have changed drastically, the school carries a 15- to 20-year debt that does not end if the school is closed. That debt still must be paid.
Therefore you have this cost, along with costs incurred with a consolidation, which will be reflected in taxes. Franklin is a great school district and has very good, dedicated employees. With the computer learning center that is available to the faculty and students, there is very little that students cannot get here in Franklin that they would be able to get in a larger school district. One method of cost savings being recommended to Franklin would be for two schools to join forces and share administrative duties. Some people are not aware that the state has arbitrarily designated any school with under 1,000 students as a small school.
In closing I just want to say that all small communities that still have their school systems intact should do all they can to save those schools, for the benefit of the students and the community. This issue is very important to me because of the respect I have for the Franklin Central School and my concern for my grandchildren's future.
John Campbell is mayor of Franklin.
Columns
Difficult decisions to be made on schools
- Big Chuck D'Imperio
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Upstate theme parks offered affordable thrills
I saw in the news last week that Disney theme parks are raising admission prices to almost $100 a person. Children (who Uncle Walt considers 10 and under) are now $86 a day.
Continued ... - Getting creative with gifts for grads
- Safety Patrol D.C. visits never get old
- My pal Brucie, savior of Sidney's hospital
- Catching a whiff of 'Vermont Vapor'
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Upstate theme parks offered affordable thrills
- Cary Brunswick
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Book-banning has a tendency to backfire
So what does the 1960s game show ``What's My Line'' got to do with the Bloomsday festivities occurring in Dublin, Ireland, this week? Surprisingly, there is a link.
Continued ... - Envisioning a world without terror
- We've become our own worst enemies
- Plenty of blame to go around for Bangladesh horror
- Obama is going against his word on Social Security
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Book-banning has a tendency to backfire
- Chuck Pinkey
- Guest Column
- Lisa Miller
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A view from above
Fire towers in the Catskill Mountains have always been destination points, built to capture some of the region’s best views. These sentinel stations served an important role for the earliest possible sightings of forest fires in the remote mountain ranges. But the fire towers and those who manned them fulfilled a multitude of other roles as well.
Continued ... - Being a parent is a constant learning process
- Healthy doesn't have to mean expensive
- A family era ends with close of Potter series
- Independent stores make up for loss of Borders
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- Mark Simonson
- Rick Brockway
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Don't play around with snappers
The other day, I was driving along Route 205 between Mount Vision and Hartwick. Suddenly, I had to swerve out of my lane to miss a huge snapping turtle. It was crossing from a large swamp on the left to some higher ground on the other side of the road.
- Emmons Pond Bog is pretty easy to enjoy
- Fishing has gotten a lot more complex
- Waterfalls are even better when you keep them to yourself
- Kids have sparkle in their eyes
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Don't play around with snappers
- Sam Pollak
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Justice Dept., IRS abuses worth screaming about
"If this had happened while a Republican was president, the liberal media would be screaming."
Continued ... - THIS WEEK'S POLL
- Using time off in the worst way possible
- Terror lives on, and there's no end in sight
- Remembering the glory of their times
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Justice Dept., IRS abuses worth screaming about
- William Masters
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Schreibman tops Chris Gibson on women's issues
As the time to vote draws near, we need to remember how money can run politics more than we can. Raising funds is a prominent (if not the dominant) task of getting elected. Raising issues is also crucial, but those efforts are subject to distortion and fear-mongering.
- Republicans feelentitled to allthey can garner An entitlement is a legal benefit available from the government to individuals who are within a defined category of recipients, such as needing insurance for unemployment or health services.
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Romney focuses on self; Obama emphasizes unity
Mitt Romney criticizes President Obama for saying a person's success is rooted in his community, and is not all his alone. Romney belittles this with his belief in individual initiative. He is better at the put-down than the push-up.
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Romney shows little regard for common man
The Republicans in Congress have voted over and over, 33 times, redundantly and uselessly, to rescind what they call Obamacare.
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Scouts' gay ban creates problem where none exists
The Boy Scouts of America's "emphatic reaffirmation" of its vow to exclude any and all homosexuals from its hallowed ranks is ill-considered and pathetic, especially in view of its having reviewed the matter for two years.
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Schreibman tops Chris Gibson on women's issues
