Indiana's Pathways & Contributing to Our World

I'm going to try and write a weekly post on various topics that come to my attention through family life, work, volunteering, reading, or attempting to being an engaged citizen in my sphere of influence. I'd try to write everyday, but the previous responsibilities I have keep me from being as consistent as I would like. 

Recently a friend of mine wrote on his facebook page -

Thank you to ALL the interested FWCS stakeholders that came to tonight's school board Meeting. The Kids that spoke were ROCKSTARS! AND REMINDER of why we are pushing this Agenda.

I encourage Any Parent of Any Indiana school to review the proposed legislation referred to as "Pathways". Some of what is being proposed is very scary...I hope our legislatures give this long, hard deliberation.

Here is an article with FWCS' decisions based on input from parents and the community as they decide how to educate students given requirements from the state and funding from similar sources.

http://www.news-sentinel.com/news/local-news/2018/03/02/fort-wayne-community-schools-provides-some-basic-information-about-questions-raised-regarding-honors-classes/

And here are the pathways an article that announced the State Board's pathways to the public:

https://www.in.gov/sboe/files/Grad%20Pathways%20-%20Draft%20Pathway%20Recommendations.v6.pdf

http://www.journalgazette.net/news/local/indiana/20171206/state-education-board-approves-new-graduation-requirements

I have been a trained educator, professional school counselor, and have attended/completed various classes throughout my life and have experience in classrooms and schools as an educator, professional school counselor, and school corporation business manager.

I appreciate the board's rigor and intentions on producing quality future citizens and demanding educator's to invest in daily efforts to hold students and families to this elevated pursuit and pray that students and families will rise to the expectations.

Do we as a region, state, and country give school systems the funding they need and the autonomous respect and resources to deliver outcomes that families are asking for? What can we do to better work together at using schools and a community's resources to lift the boats of all a community's children, adults, employees, and employers?

I appreciate my friend's call to activate stakeholders and get them to participate in community engagement when normally we just scream at each other and complain about what their views are "from across the aisle". I do hope that we look for win-win solutions where given a finite amount of resources - time and money - we can give up a few things to make progress in areas we prioritize - both as families and groups of individuals.

Thank you and look forward to holding myself and encouraging my wife and daughter's to do their best on a daily basis.