To the editor:
I appreciate your article on Dublin Consolidated School fifth grade. While it was a good article and reflective of what was passed, I do have a concern with your headline to the article. I believe that the headline to the article was not accurate nor reflective of what really was accomplished. We all know that headlines are meant to grab attention but they also set a fixed expectation for the content of the article.
The headline states “Fifth grade to be phased out of Dublin Consolidated School’. Phased out by dictionary definition means “an act of discontinuing a process, project, or service in phases.” That is not accurate nor was it the basis of my motion.
More accurate would have been “Fifth grade to be continued at Dublin Consolidated School” Continuation by dictionary definition means “the action of carrying something on over a period of time or the process of being carried on”. That is accurate.
Fifth grade continuation at DCS has been an almost annual issue that the School Board has had to wrestle with. Keeping this discussion as an almost annual event has caused confusion, anxiety and planning issues for both parents and the ConVal district. No one knew from year to year what the status of DCS fifth grade was. There is a lot of history and background that goes into the availability of fifth grade but that is for another article.
The motion that was unanimously passed by the School Board takes the unknown out of the availability of fifth grade, allows for proper planning and gives parents, students and ConVal administration a planned road to follow. It allows for the continuation of fifth grade over a multi-year period.
We now have the opportunity to better manage our environment and for the first time have a long term commitment.
What the future (after six years) holds I cannot predict; however, we now have time to focus on other significant issues.
Alan Edelkind
School Board Representative, Dublin