LETTERS: MEADOW HEIGHTS

To the editor:

I have followed the recent happenings in the Meadow Heights School District as an objective observer. I have had enough and find I must speak out on this matter, especially considering that we will soon elect new members to our school board in April.

The job of board members is above all to promote the welfare of the institution they have been elected to represent. It is also part of their duty to work to ensure the institution adheres to ethical and legal standards and to reflect and respond to the changing needs of the community.

I don't want to believe that there is a single member of the school board who isn't sorry for the financial misrepresentation that the people in Southeast Missouri are now familiar with. Most of all, Roy Allen, president, would regret and seek to rectify this situation.

But part of the board seemed to seize upon the information with gleeful vindictiveness. Soon, board meetings had cameras and tape recorder to witness the actions taking place. The newspapers were kept well-informed over any and every sordid detail. A community was torn and thrown into a storm of mayhem. Three board members in particular kept their heads and remembered their fiduciary duties. It took great courage on their part to take actions to protect and mend the damage that has been done. I would like to sincerely thank board president Allen and members Phyllis Bollinger and Junior Cook, as well as Sandy Raines. It took a great deal of courage to abstain from voting.

Instead of acting in a professional manner to promote the Meadow Heights School District, one school board member in particular has seemed to seek to destroy the integrity of the district and thwart every effort at healing and improving education in our community. For instance, the 50-cent school tax that was enacted to pay for the addition to the elementary school recently cam up for the board to vote on to parlay an extension of this tax to the voters for approval in April. Targeted improvements included not only badly needed renovations for the school that would result in overall savings in energy consumption, but would have allowed for the construction of 10 additional high school classrooms and much-needed technical education. We may have even finally got some adult education classes in the area instead of having to travel to Perryville, Farmington or Cape Girardeau. The tax would have been extended for 20 years instead of the approved 12 years. Just a technicality, really. When 12 years are up, the school board will vote to ask the taxpayers to extend this tax again. But the naysayers on our school board said no. They said wait and let's see what will happen to our community. When this comes up again, and it will, the blueprints and architectural plans will have to be contracted for all over again, not to mention increased construction costs. But some people sought to exercise their political powers to extend their own agenda in this matter to arbitrarily censure and cripple the progression for the overall good to the community. I wonder: What do they expect will happen to this community? Will families move away? Fewer families relocate here? Apparently these are their expectations and goals. One of these board members doesn't even think enough of this county and school district to live here and let their children attend school here.

The bottom line is these board members don't have the best interests of our community in mind. Last Sunday when our members left church, they found fliers shoved under their windshield wipers, propaganda born of anger and personal political agendas. I don't know what role Principal Chastain had in the whole Meadow Heights shakeup. My son, who has attended Meadow Heights for four years thinks very highly of him. My son will probably be very unhappy with me for writing this. But he is only 9 years old and, like me, doesn't know the inner workings of the business side of operating a school. That is why I vote to elect school board members I can trust. If Mr. Chastain didn't act in a supportive manner to the existing institution, he should be allowed to find an institution he can feel loyal to. I support any and all whistle-blowers if they truly act in the public interest. Personally, I feel the proponents of that windshield propaganda would have spent their time better in church praying for a healing of this community.

LOUISE A. SLOAN

Patton