Mary on the issues
Transparency
I believe that parents have the ultimate authority over their children, that taxpayers should know how our dollars are spent, and that honest communication should not be another battle that we must fight, but something freely given. Updated and complete curriculum should be readily available, and parents must be the first to be included in conversations involving our children’s behavior, learning experience, and well being.
Loving and fit parents have been wrongly treated as our children’s enemy, and our authority undermined. It’s time to take that back.
Safety
I believe that a safe and secure learning environment is an essential foundation of educational success, mental fortitude, and a robust society. Students and staff should not be subjected to a life of fear of their peers, or from external threats. We must implement proven and effective safety procedures wherever possible.
Children must, equally, be protected at all costs, from adults within the school system that intend to sexually assault, groom, or otherwise expose them to age inappropriate content, and those terms must be defined. A district which truly cares about the mental health of its students is not a district that would push families away from such a realm of care. Safe adults do not keep secrets.
Disability Advocacy
An accessible school begets successful learners. Children with disabilities should not be treated like second class citizens, or an educational afterthought. Parents of disabled students already face so many emotional, unthinkable, and, often, invisible battles to advocate for their children, everywhere they go. For many families to whom I’ve spoken, and with which I’ve closely worked, the topic of schooling is the greatest battle of them all.
Every child is capable, and when we treat them as such, it’s incredible to see just how well they flourish. Let’s fight for inclusion of our most vulnerable populace.