(Ed.'s note: The following was read at the March 21 BOE meeting and is printed here at the writer's request.)

When I decided to attend the meeting tonight, I also decided that it was time to make a shocking statement to let the community members and you, the board of education members, know how I feel. Why? Because I truly do not believe that you have the teachers' best interests at heart or that you take your teachers with enough seriousness, and that to me is shocking. Your teachers are providing another year of dedicated effort to the children in this community on all levels. It is shocking that you won't respond in kind! It is shocking that you are misconstruing kindness for weakness. We are doing our jobs as we should! It is shocking that you cannot say the same on our behalf. At this point in time I am feeling disrespected. It is shocking that you either choose not to care about how we feel and treat us professionally or not to be concerned with the undue amount of time it's taking you to provide us with what we deserve.

When I moved here 30 years ago and started working here 25 years ago, this district was a very different place to work in. As a taxpayer I am fully aware that times change and therefore financial considerations change, but if you expect to maintain the reputation that the teachers here have established for you in this district then you should offer fair and timely treatment and fair consideration when it's time to renew our contract. And such a time has now grown to better than 10 months. This is unfair and shocking! I know it's emotional, but that's how we're feeling right now!