Barbara Davis, candidate for re-election to the school committee, said, “I want to ensure that the public school students of Holbrook receive the highest quality of education as possible.
“I take my job as a member of the school committee very seriously. I am visible in the schools. I attend many school events, from football and basketball games to concerts and drama productions. I visit the classrooms in all three buildings on a regular basis and touch base with the principals often. I also speak with teachers and staff frequently.
“We need to expand our course offerings at the Junior/Senior High School level so that students have more options. We need to make sure that all our students take challenging courses so that they are prepared for college and life after high school while fulfilling the Common Core Curriculum at the same time. We currently have six advanced placement courses, more than a couple of the local private schools combined. We need to ensure that students continue to have these options, as well as those of Virtual High School, which we joined this past year.
“We need to implement a full day kindergarten program. The state is strongly encouraging this implementation. Studies show that the earlier we are able to reach a child, the more likely it is that the child will be successful in school.
“We also need to continue our work in lowering and maintaining class sizes. Schools with students who are most successful on standardized tests typically have lower class sizes. This is critical, especially in the earlier grades. Holbrook ranks near the bottom of the list of communities in Massachusetts for regular education per pupil expenditures and in the percentage of school versus non-school expenditure.
“We need to strengthen our arts programs. Courses like art, music, and drama, rather than being frills in a school curriculum, are a necessity. Studies show that schools with strong arts programs have students who perform better on standardized tests such as the SATs or the MCAS. Music making develops students with better math skills, better reading skills, and better social skills. In short, making music makes you smarter. In order to expand our arts programs, we need space to have art and music areas in each building. In addition, the Junior/Senior High School doesn’t even have any music practice rooms or a decent rehearsal hall, items that have existed in most area high schools for decades and which are necessary to run a good quality music program.
“There have been many positive improvements over the past several years in the Holbrook public schools, but there is still much more to be done. I want to continue working towards our goal of making the Holbrook public schools a model for academic excellence and innovation. I want to ensure that all our students receive a challenging, well-rounded curriculum that will enable them to be prepared with all the tools they need to be successful after high school.
“In conclusion, I believe that students in small towns like Holbrook deserve the same opportunities as students in more affluent communities. I will continue to work hard to make that happen.”
To find out how you can help, contact Campaign Manager Alex Mann at alexandermann@yahoo.com or Barbara Davis at barbarapdavis@gmail.com.
“I take my job as a member of the school committee very seriously. I am visible in the schools. I attend many school events, from football and basketball games to concerts and drama productions. I visit the classrooms in all three buildings on a regular basis and touch base with the principals often. I also speak with teachers and staff frequently.
“We need to expand our course offerings at the Junior/Senior High School level so that students have more options. We need to make sure that all our students take challenging courses so that they are prepared for college and life after high school while fulfilling the Common Core Curriculum at the same time. We currently have six advanced placement courses, more than a couple of the local private schools combined. We need to ensure that students continue to have these options, as well as those of Virtual High School, which we joined this past year.
“We need to implement a full day kindergarten program. The state is strongly encouraging this implementation. Studies show that the earlier we are able to reach a child, the more likely it is that the child will be successful in school.
“We also need to continue our work in lowering and maintaining class sizes. Schools with students who are most successful on standardized tests typically have lower class sizes. This is critical, especially in the earlier grades. Holbrook ranks near the bottom of the list of communities in Massachusetts for regular education per pupil expenditures and in the percentage of school versus non-school expenditure.
“We need to strengthen our arts programs. Courses like art, music, and drama, rather than being frills in a school curriculum, are a necessity. Studies show that schools with strong arts programs have students who perform better on standardized tests such as the SATs or the MCAS. Music making develops students with better math skills, better reading skills, and better social skills. In short, making music makes you smarter. In order to expand our arts programs, we need space to have art and music areas in each building. In addition, the Junior/Senior High School doesn’t even have any music practice rooms or a decent rehearsal hall, items that have existed in most area high schools for decades and which are necessary to run a good quality music program.
“There have been many positive improvements over the past several years in the Holbrook public schools, but there is still much more to be done. I want to continue working towards our goal of making the Holbrook public schools a model for academic excellence and innovation. I want to ensure that all our students receive a challenging, well-rounded curriculum that will enable them to be prepared with all the tools they need to be successful after high school.
“In conclusion, I believe that students in small towns like Holbrook deserve the same opportunities as students in more affluent communities. I will continue to work hard to make that happen.”
To find out how you can help, contact Campaign Manager Alex Mann at alexandermann@yahoo.com or Barbara Davis at barbarapdavis@gmail.com.
Read more: CANDIDATES CORNER: Davis stresses highest possible quality of education for Holbrook - Holbrook, MA - Holbrook Sun http://www.wickedlocal.com/holbrook/archive/x904832385/CANDIDATES-CORNER-Davis-stresses-highest-possible-quality-of-education-for-Holbrook#ixzz1GJcpEViP
2 comments:
Barbara, I have a question. We had a music practice area and of course the stage. i know the Electrical program took over the practice area ages ago. We no longer have electrical that i know of so what is that space used for now? I think part of the problem the schools have is that many people who attended HHS when it truly was crowded remember that we had all those things and more in the same building we have now,. Now we have a lot less kids and we need more space?? it doesn't make sense, unless you know additional facts. I ( and i'm sure others ) would benefit from this info. Thanks Sue Wright
Sue,
The area that used to house the shops, which have been gone for many, many years (before my time even), then houses the Charms program until we closed down the Central office building. The shop area now houses the Central office. However, one thing that you didn't have were computer labs, science labs, and special education classrooms, which have taken over lots of space in the building. Also the classrooms are undersized for today's education standards, the science labs are inadequate, the library is of an inadequate size for the numbers of students and also does not meet standards. And it's not that "more" space is needed, but "different" space. We're not talking about building the Taj Mahal, but a building appropriate to the numbers of students we would have.
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