Good afternoon,
I want to believe in, “your best professional intentions,” however, “your best professional intentions,” have unnecessarily hurt children in our district and there have been zero apologies. Who gives anyone the authority to mask a child that is wheezing from an asthma attack? Rockingham county’s transmission rate is LOW, President Biden has declared that the pandemic is over. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Sep 23, 2022, no longer recommends universal masking in health care settings. PLEASE STOP the insanity!
This board has not lead by example, you continue to fail the test of inclusion and acceptance! Even when entire countries, states, local school boards and parents disagreed with your decisions, you didn’t budge. A different viewpoint was not respected and it’s STILL not being respected. Evidence is clear school closures, remote learning and masking….. hurt children! Masking statistically did NOT make a difference!
History has repeatedly shown that there is a real danger in believing that you are so right that there is no other choice! You must be willing to consider there is evidence contradictory to your beliefs and admit that your beliefs might be wrong.
A cloth mask from Old Navy, that was proven to be little than more than a facial decoration created such ugliness and crazy controlling behavior over children and this board took away parental rights! Our children were being taught fear, fear of the air they breathe and prolonged fear equals TRAUMA!
I feel like we live in one of the most extreme towns in the country, the children at Phillips Exeter are still being forced to mask! We repeatedly made national news for what we have done to children! SAU16 had to be forced two times to do the right thing by the Governor, you didn’t listen to over 80% of the parents! Even when every single one of you said it could not be done, clearly it could be done!
Dr. Ryan you and this board have never taken responsibility, you brought this school system to its knees. A once thriving district where families wanted to live so their kids could go to the school has become a place that is extreme.
I tell my children we need to forgive and not forget! Teaches and staff should be having healing, conversations and apologies to children. My daughter didn’t want to go to the nurses office last week because she felt like they didn’t like her because she protested masking last year. I know a lot of kids feel this way in the school. The same people on this board and SAU 16 staff that were sending their own children to in person school and not wearing masks out in public were enforcing different rules on young children!
I understand that many on the board are volunteering your time and everyone loves children, however, I think there’s many lessons that we can learn from over the last two years. I read a quote once that said “you focus on the hurt you continue to hurt you focus on the lessons you continue to grow.”
Let’s focus now on doing the right thing for children, focus on the peer reviewed CDC and AAP guidelines that says implementing later school start times is the BEST thing you can do for ALL children! Maybe use ESSER funds to buy 2 electric buses for SST, give kids normalcy, get them off I READY and out of unattended classes in the CMS auditorium, bring back ALL school dances (don’t call them recipes for disaster), bring back the overnight field trips, let the children know the adults believe they are GOOD and VALUED and let’s have some fun in the community …maybe have a carnival for unity and healing!
We were able to pull our oldest out of SAU16 for high school she’s currently attending Saint Thomas and my three younger children are on a wait list at Sacred Heart. Sending them to private school was never our intention. Over the last few weeks we have watched our oldest daughter have the time of her life, what a difference a school makes. She has normalcy, she has staff excited to be there, excited for spirit week filling it with amazing activities, there was a home, Homecoming football game, a Homecoming dance and a real sense of community!
Let’s bring back common sense to SAU 16 and respect what parents really want for their children, a great education with a fun, exciting, normal high school experience! It doesn’t have to be so hard! Over the years children’s needs haven’t changed, sadly it’s the adults agenda that has changed.
Thank you,
