Letters

I wish I was a school superintendent

In my next life, I want to be a school superintendent like Deborah Howard at East Valley.

A six-figure contract and she gets a $10,000 raise. Yes, she just got a raise, but that was for the position the School Board decided needed to be dissolved. Now, she’s the superintendent and then was voted another raise by June Sine, Mike King and Kerri Lunstroth (absent Jerry Shaw). Once again the only nay vote was Roger Trainor.

Not to say she doesn’t deserve it. She wields an even bigger ax than Paul Bunyan. Only instead of cutting trees Ms. Howard has cut jobs: counselors, para-pros, security, teachers and librarians, not to mention the quality of education.

Those jobs that she can’t cut, she tries to replace with younger recruits. Her great idea is to replace old teachers with young ones who lack both the temperament and experience to fight back. She does this mostly from the district office, which is not connected to any school both physically or figuratively. She does save gas money. Now that she is superintendent she can save on employee salaries.

Wouldn’t I love to be Deb Howard: make lots of money, save your friends’ jobs and dupe the School Board.

Sarah Emert

Newman Lake