On Feb. 4, the Jaffrey-Rindge deliberative session on the school budget was held at the Pratt auditorium in Jaffrey. The turnout was stellar and the discussion fruitful — especially the Conant students who stepped to the mic to lend their voices regarding the school’s proposed budget. The students are precisely the reason I lend a further point of view regarding education, and in particular, support for the Jaffrey-Rindge school budget.
During my three-minute public comment, I spoke about our collective responsibility as a community to invest in our schools and the young people they serve. I quoted philosopher, psychologist and educational reformer John Dewey, who said: “What the best and wisest parent wants for their own child, that must the community want for all of its children.”
Regardless of educational philosophies — private, public or homeschool — we should support the public school budget as presented by the Jaffrey-Rindge School Board because to do so is to vote for the best education for all of the community’s children.
But a budget is merely a skeleton of salaries, food, supplies, equipment, insurance, and transportation — the “cost of doing business,” the barebones day-to-day functions of keeping the doors open. All well and good to be fiscally responsible and hold administration accountable, but for a school to truly come alive it needs community engagement, the support from Jaffrey-Rindge residents who are fully invested in their school of excellence, its staff and students.
I am reminded of the metaphor Paul used in 1 Corinthians 12. He describes a community of believers as a “body” and explains that while a body has many parts — eyes, hands, feet —they are all interconnected and therefore… “if one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together.”
When we apply Paul’s metaphor to our children, the message is clear. If one grade level is struggling, the whole town feels the ache. If our student athletes or our children in theater or our vocational students are thriving, the whole town stands a little taller. Therefore, Jaffrey-Rindge, I propose we are not a collection of isolated households, we are one “body” of people — in the classroom, on the field, at work and in our homes. We are Orioles, the Black and Orange, a group, a team, a body. For that body to function at its peak, all the parts of the body need to work together because a hand cannot help if it is tucked in a pocket. An eye cannot guide if it is closed.
My family has called the Jaffrey-Rindge community home for 23 years. In that time, I have observed our school district and its staff from many angles. I’ve watched my children graduate from Conant, Mount Wachusett, and Daniel Webster College. I now support their children’s education — all 10 of school age — in their respective school programs: sports, concerts, plays, fundraisers, religious and secular. I support education, public or private. It is an investment for me, and “investing” in education gives the greatest return.
Our community investment in education isn’t just a financial act we perform once a year at the ballot box. Nor is it handing over loose change for candy bars and popcorn fundraisers. The real investment is the encouragement we provide staff and students through engaging with them as a supportive community. Real investment means engagement, not just when there is a problem, but when there is a possibility. Volunteering for field trips, attending concerts, cheering from the sidelines and bridge-building between community and classroom. Becoming a “School of Excellence” supported by a “Community of Excellence.”
In the context of the “body” metaphor, engagement becomes an act of self-care for the community. When you mentor a student, help with a fundraiser, or sit down with a young person to ask what they learned that day, you are strengthening the very fabric of Jaffrey-Rindge society. You are engaged. You are invested.
Likewise, if we want a healthy community body, we cannot leave the work of education to the teachers, administrators and coaches. They are the muscle and sinew of our body, but they cannot support themselves. They need a foundation, solid bones to support a growing body. By voting “Yes” to the presented budget we have an opportunity to ensure that the “bones” of Jaffrey-Rindge education are as solid as Monadnock’s granite.
On March 10, let us commit to more than just a “Yes” vote on the budget. Let us commit to being active, engaged members of this body we call Jaffrey-Rindge. Let’s nourish our families, schools and institutions of higher learning with our time, wisdom, and energy. When we do, we don’t just improve a school district, we ensure the health and vitality of our Jaffrey-Rindge family for generations to come.
Brent MacArthur Charles, a long-time resident of Jaffrey and the Jaffrey-Rindge School District, served as an elder at Jaffrey Bible Church from 2002 to 2011 and as a member of the Jaffrey-Rindge Ambulance Board from 2019 to 2021. He has 10 grandchildren attending local public and private schools.