At a Vancouver Public Schools board meeting in October, Tom Eiland presented results of a survey conducted by his company regarding Vancouver Public Schools. Eiland mentioned strong support for Vancouver’s levies. He said voters overwhelmingly support school improvement levies because people relate to the need for functional air conditioners and heaters and understand the impact on productivity.
This was positive news for the parents of Sacajawea Elementary School. For the past five years, we have been asking for help from the district because our school does not have a functional air conditioning unit. We asked for information about the unit, we asked to bring in a specialist connected to the school who offered to examine the unit, and we asked about fundraising efforts to fix the unit. We’ve been told Vancouver Public Schools won’t do anything until they pass a school improvement levy. Even though the survey showed that people would support a school improvement levy, Vancouver Public Schools decided on a technology levy instead.
Throughout the year, our students are sitting in classrooms hotter than international safety standards, which impacts learning. New technology is great, but that should not be a higher priority than safe and comfortable classrooms, especially at an elementary school with diverse needs.
Angela Arnett
Vancouver
