OPINION: Citizen questions effectiveness of JMCSS education

Of all the responsible and interested parties for our public school system what party would you guess is hurt the worst?  

Not the Superintendent, not the Central Office, very few teachers and principals, not the county commissioners, not the School Board. 

If you guessed the students you would be right!  

I have had multiple visits in the past with several  Superintendents , members of the School Board, County Commissioners and heard the same tired excuses..."we can't find qualified teachers, a large number of students come from fractured homes, it just takes time along with numerous other excuses," but for the past 30 years we have shown no real improvement!  

As a former Marine I know, excuses are for sissies and good people get hurt in the process! Unacceptable! 

Are there solutions to this problem? You bet there are! 

If this strikes a nerve with you, give Brandon Shields a call! Understand, he is only responsible for reporting the situation, not fixing it, but I would guess if he received enough calls he could find a way to keep our number one problem in the forefront! 

Keep in mind, as our public school system goes, so goes our community.

Most people with children thinking about moving to a different city will first check out the public schools, and most realtors will suggest, "if you can afford it, you may want to consider PRIVATE School!” 

After a visit with one Superintendent while listening to him pontificate about all the things "we are doing for our students", I replied "no sir, you are simply running the largest babysitting

entity in this county." 

He started to reply, but thought better about it! The truth hurts!

Bill Baxter is a former Jackson-Madison County School Board member and a business owner in the community. Letters to the editor and guest columns are encouraged as a venue for readers to voice their opinions on local matters or the occasional state or national matter. Letters can be e-mailed to jksnpost@gmail.com.