What does it mean to vote no on a school budget?

Voting no speaks volumes. It speaks to students in particular.

Voting no tells students that programs that help them excel are excessive. We don’t need to provide options for students to explore different opportunities in high school. Music and the arts, clubs and intramural activities are “extras.”

Sports teams don’t make a difference in students’ lives.

Our accolades, scholarships, and celebrations of achievements in school activities, sports, honor roll, unified sports, community service, and academic awards are false promises not backed by any true investments.

Summer school for failing students is a luxury.

Classroom supplies should be limited and not include anything to brighten the room or engage learners in new and exciting ways. Old, broken, and worn out furniture is fine for our kids. We can make due with outdated books and broken tech.

We do not embrace innovation. We are educational followers, not leaders.

Teachers, service providers, student support services, teaching assistants, and teacher aides are unnecessary, expendable employees. The hard work and long hours spent preparing students for careers is not valuable.

Personal interactions with students do not make an impact.

Our school and the education it provides are not a priorites worth our investment.

Is this what Fredonia believes?

For my entire adult life I have worked at Fredonia Central School District. It has been a wonderful place to work as an educator because I have always felt that the community valued my work and my impact. It’s gratifying to do this incredibly demanding job when I know I have the community behind me! I even tuitioned my own daughter to Fredonia because of the opportunities that were available to her here but are not offered in my home district.

Suddenly, however, the support for our school is faltering. Why? Public schools unite us. In public schools we educate every child, regardless of where they live, who is raising them, what they believe or what their abilities and interests are. Without our community-supported public school, we are no longer creating a solid foundation for the future of Fredonia. Budgets that don’t pass mean a loss of opportunities for current and future students. It means people who are looking to relocate consider neighboring districts that provide more opportunities for their students.

Students will be packed into classrooms with less adult support for learning. Students who struggle to pass elementary and middle school classes will have no access to summer opportunities for catching up their learning. Sports, clubs, and activities that help children feel a sense of community, belonging, and self-worth will no longer be offered. Options for students in high school will be limited to the most basic offerings rather than the well-rounded education that has made Fredonia a stand-out district.

Maybe your no vote wasn’t intended to say these things. Maybe it was a response to increasing taxes and higher costs. I understand that. What’s being asked now equals an increase of $63 per year on an average house in the district. That’s $5.25 a month. It means making good on the promises of prop 1 of the capital project — safe, warm, and dry — without sacrificing more opportunities for kids.

Without our community-supported public school, we are no longer creating a solid foundation for the future of Fredonia. We will not be meeting our promise to educate the next leaders of our community. That label Fredonia Central School District will become one that is not representative of who we are and what we believe. And if we decimate this school, who will want to live here? Who will care for us in our old age? Who will run for political office in our region? Who will write for the paper? Who will start a small business or build something new? Who will move to this town and buy that beautiful property? Who will grow our food? Who will lead us in our faith communities? Who will run the post office, the market, and your beloved pizza place? Who will do community service? Who will?

If we don’t turn around and invest in our public school, no one will, and our community will suffer for it.

I believe that my students — your children, nieces, nephews, grandbabies, and neighbors — deserve to have excellent facilities, furniture in great condition, up-to-date textbooks, and the best, brightest, most dedicated and compassionate people to educate them. They deserve to immerse themselves in new experiences in technology, art, music, and sport. They deserve to know we care about giving them a world-class education.

They deserve to know that if school is hard they will find a helping hand. They deserve new uniforms for their teams and technology to use in the classroom. They deserve class sizes that allow personalized attention. We can’t do any of that without your support.

At this point, a yes vote means that the District won’t need to further cut programs and opportunities beyond what has already been eliminated. Contingency would decimate our school. Our children deserve the best, and Fredonia deserves the best.

Vote with your future in mind. Please, vote yes for our students and our community on June 17.

Michelle Greenough is a Cherry Creek resident and president of the Fredonia Teachers Association.