We don't agree with their reasons. Here's what we believe.
Their Reasons to vote YES
+ Our Vote NO Response
Without this plan, the district can go back to the "drawing board" and consider other options.
More school closures? Larger class sizes? Combining high schools into one? All speculation. Not a certainty.
A NO vote looks at better student options as well as taxpayer consequences.
We are independent and nonpartisan as well. But our practicality informs our concerns.
From early on, the School Board has not been transparent in their process to arrive at this plan. Why?
We agree it's about our kids. That's why we're opposed to this plan. We're not convinced it's the best we can do for Dubuque students.
The citizens of Dubuque deserve better.
Regardless of a YES or NO vote, the Holy Family and Dubuque Community Schools will continue to coexist.
This point seems irrelevant to the discussion.
If you do better, Dubuque Community Schools, you'll continue to be strong.
Dubuque deserves better.
Dubuque students deserve better.
For us, the "equity" argument isn’t a convincing one.
A "quality" education has more strength than the "experience." Our priority: quality learning over better physical spaces.
Re: The concern about maintenance costs. In a Facebook post, someone asked: "If your home needs air conditioning, do you build a new house and tear down the one you're living in?"
How do you define "quality schools? To us, it's much more than the physical building.
Let's look at student academic outcomes in an older school.
Bryant Elementary School was built in 1940. Eighty-five (85) years ago.
In 2008 Bryant was named a 2007 Blue Ribbon School, the highest honor that a United States school can achieve marking the school as scoring in the top ten percent in state assessments. Conferred by the U. S. Department of Education, less than 2% of all U. S. schools earned the designation.
[Source: Encyclopedia Dubuque.]
Dubuque's long-term success depends on well-educated students who can meet the challenges of an ever-changing world and its demands for critical thinkers.
