Currently local resources are not sufficient to provide and adequate educational experience. A high quality educational experience includes programs beyond teachers and classrooms. We must include music, arts, sports, and extra curricular activities as part of the overall growing and learning process.
Our classrooms must have up-to-date facilities. Currently our K-8 buildings fit into this category, but I have already seen issues related to simple maintenance of property, textbooks, other learning materials, particularly at the older middle schools. Keeping up with maintenance, and providing extra programs are often overlooked in the budget process.
One approach is the use of innovative fund raising and cost cutting. A few models to look at are the Friends of the Medford Family Network, which raises additional funding for MFN programs that are not paid for directly by the district. Another is the approach taken by the "Field of Dreams" committee to link cell tower revenue to debt service on a new soccer field. This model could also be used to help fund additional programs beyond those required by state curriculum standards.
Energy cost savings and be achieved with additional innovation such as the wind turbine planned for the Andrews - McGlynn campus, with additional solar power like city hall. The district should use electronic distribution of paper materials where feasible, avoiding not only the cost of the paper and processing, but also all of the environmental waste associated with excessive paper use.
We should continue to foster our relationship with Tufts University to see if they can provide extra facilities, such as special classes, on-site labs, and mentoring programs. Private corporations can be asked to donate second-hand computers and printers. This is currently being done at the Andrews School, and should be expanded throughout the district. We can continue to look into affinity programs such as shopping or credit card bonuses. Finally, we should take more advantage of parental resources for both fund raising and in-building help.
