My daughter is a Senior this year and when she started school in Ninilchik she was so excited. School opened a whole new world for her. A world with endless possibilities. She was going on a mission to Mars in the 4^th grade. Her 4/5 split classroom prepared for the mission, the excitement grew until the final days before launch, but alas, she and the rest of her 4^th grade friends wouldn’t be flying to Mars that year. Why, because they were too young. But there was always next year. Next year came, the funding was cut and they never got to go to Mars. While that may not seem important to you I can tell you it was to them. Their dreams have been dashed so many times over the years because of a lack of funds and/or teachers at our schools.

As a parent, I have sat back and watched as non-controllable costs have gone up and the district has had to make cuts. I have watched as people have moved because of the lack of work. I have watched the decline in the student population. I have watched as we cut away field trips, music, art, supplies, materials and teachers from the classroom. I have watched as teachers teach with less, work more hours, taken on more responsibilities. I ask myself why would they do that and the answer is simple because they believe in education they believe in a better tommorrow for our children!

Every single day someone says “Why should we care about education? We are not getting any results. Look at the test scores we are failing.” Not for a moment do I feel we fail every student. Our teachers and staff are the unsung heroes in our district. Our students are some of the brightest the state has. Our students can navigate within the technological society we live in. Our students are developing those critical thinking skills which are so important.

Children are the future and our most valuable Natural Resource.

There are so many reasons we educate our children

1. Education provides for stable life & allows children to realize their self-independence

2. Education turns their dreams of equality into reality

3.Education makes the world a safer and more peaceful place

4. Education makes students confident in a global world

5. Education is essential for the economic growth of our nation

These are just a few of the advantages to education but just like any other field there will be failures. With each failure, we find a way to correct and move forward. Each child has a potential and it is our responsibility to unlock that potential.

John Dewey said: “Education is not preparation for life; education is life itself.”

Albert Einstein said: “Education is not the learning of facts, but the training of the mind to think.”

I believe in education and I believe in our students, staff, communities and district. Together we will build great leaders for the future generations.