Crabtree asks residents to vote yest Nov. 7

To the Editor:
When I read Superintendent Oftedahl’s editorial in the Sept. 21 issue of the Star Herald (Nov. 7 referendum asks district residents to make a difference), I couldn’t help but smile and nod to myself in agreement.
Supt. Oftedahl said, “The idea of making a difference is essential to education.” I’m raising my children to make a difference — and Luverne Public Schools teachers and staff are backing me up all the way. Our local schools are helping prepare our local young people to grow up to be productive citizens — and we must provide them the healthy and safe school environment they need to do their work. That’s why the upcoming referendum on Nov. 7 is so important.
Our middle school/high school is more than 60 years old at its core. It doesn’t have a secure entrance, which unfortunately is necessary today. Its lunchroom is not large enough to serve the number of students at the Middle School/High School.
There isn’t the technology access needed to support today’s learning. Back when the school building was first constructed, personal computers weren’t even a gleam in some scientist’s eye.
Some of the middle school classrooms are just too small for kids to learn what is required for them to succeed in today’s world. The 21st century environment is a lot more complex and requires greater critical-thinking capability, collaboration experience and problem-solving ability. Those skills are honed through independent and group projects in breakout sessions, not just by sitting in desks facing forward.
Students today are really engaged in their schoolwork, but they don’t always have the space they need in their classrooms today to learn what they need to prepare them for tomorrow. Students and teachers make do, but we owe them more. For our schools to continue to thrive, teachers need the right environment to teach, and students need the right environment to learn.
In his editorial, Supt. Oftedahl noted, “Educating students and building relationships to prepare young people for the world is our purpose and we take it very seriously.” We as a community need to take investment in our young people and our schools very seriously, too. As a community we have an opportunity to help make a positive difference in our current and future students’ lives. As a community it is our responsibility to come together and vote “yes” on the Nov. 7 referendum.
Emily Crabtree
Luverne
LHS parent; Class of 1990