What will Education in Greenfield look like in 2020?

Written by Hassan Elzeneiny

Saturday, 22 March 2008

This is a draft of a Strategic Planning process proposed by Hassan Elzeneiny to the Greenfield School Committee in November 2007. What he proposes is a Joint School Task Force made up of School Committee members, Town Councilors and members of the general public. Please write our Council and Committee members and ask them to reconsider this inclusive evolution of our community. Contact information is HERE Call me a dreamer. Call me a new Greenfield politician. Or, call me the Secretary of the School Committee.In any case, like you I’m watching the School Committee fend off the critics on Town Council and at the mayor’s office over the School Budget. This year it happens to have a $1,100,000 million deficit. Last year it was whether to close two elementary schools, and whether all citizens would benefit equally from a proposition 2 ½ tax override. Will Greenfield learn from her mistakes or, are we, the community, doomed to recycle the same failed ideas? I, for one, hope that we do better. Unfortunately, I am not seeing signs of any change. Consider that this year’s kindergarten students will become the high school graduating Class of 2020. What will Franklin County be like when they finish high school? What knowledge and skills will these students need to become productive and happy citizens? How can our public schools best educate students for a future we can only guess at today? So, I want you to grab a cup of coffee and take a few minutes to analyze the benefits of long term planning for our schools. I call on Mayor Christine Forgey to appoint a Joint School Task Force made up of School Committee members, Town Councilors and members of the general public that will create a strategic plan for the public schools. The goal must be to forge widespread ownership of a shared strategy. A community’s school system can not be changed without strong, informed public support among parents, guardians, elected officials and the public at-large. Faculty, staff, parents, students and elected officials can all have a voice if a Joint Sub-committee would identify areas of focus, and use them to give rise to school staff & community working groups. There is a consensus that we have a strong foundation to build on. It is clear, to me, that a majority in our Town value the background, intelligence, compassion, teaching talent and desire for collegiality shown by the staff of the Greenfield Public School System. Some will wonder, “Where do we get the money for all these great plans”? Let me be clear that I am advocating an evolution, not a revolution. Public engagement is the first step toward a successful outcome by the Joint Strategic Planning Sub-Committee. To express your agreement that a Joint Strategic Planning Sub-committee should be formed now, send emails, cards and letters. Write to each School Committee member, each Town Councilor, and to the Mayor’s staff in support of having a community wide conversation. The dream of a better world for the students begins with your engagement; so join the yeoman’s work of volunteers who will embark on this exploration into the future. We have talented and committed people in this Town who can have an open and honest discussion about where we want our schools to be in 2020. Hassan Elzeneiny Secretary Greenfield School Committee