To the editor:

I was curious to attend the SESS meeting on Dec. 10, 2009, because it seemed that teachers and parents were really joining together to improve academic excellence in the Scarborough schools. From my past experience this kind of cooperation between teachers, parents and citizens was always difficult.
The meeting agenda started with a very brief introduction and overview, then on the agenda were “Teacher Perspectives.” For 90 minutes eight to nine teachers spoke about how they were not paid enough and they all appeared quite angry toward the town. Academic strengthening came up only as it related to more school funding.
I tried to ask a question of one of the “presenting teachers” and he refused to answer. I asked for a show of hands to determine how many participants at the meeting were not in some way involved with the Scarborough schools (parents, citizens). Less than half the attendance raised a hand. Clearly, this is a teachers group. Please don’t be fooled. Their mission statement and five other defining statements about the group all include wanting more money, especially for teachers’ salaries.
The town has been overwhelmingly generous to the needs of its schools. The school budget has increased more than 183 percent in the past 10 years. Scarborough taxpayers voted for a $27 million renovation of the high school. It was the most money ever spent by a Maine town funding a renovation entirely without state funding. Public school teachers have a monopoly and the strongest union in the country to negotiate their salaries.
Parents and citizens should not be involved with negotiating teachers’ salaries. It is wrong that teachers are calling the school budget “bare bones” and using tactics like this to scare students and parents. I hope that I do not hear any other distortions about the school budget from this group. If anyone hears or sees such “scare tactics” going on in the schools, notify the superintendent’s office because this behavior is strictly forbidden.
Please be smart and aware when you read about this group. They will be sending a survey to refine what Scarborough citizens want for educational goals. Ask the difficult questions: Why not measure excellence, performance and efficiency and reward school systems that achieve excellence at the lowest cost? Why are we spending so much on education in Maine and getting so little in return? Having more teachers per pupil has not improved performance.
My question is why do we need two superintendents? The original position of assistant superintendent was a temporary position given to Susan Gendron in the early 1990s. She was doing four different jobs. When all positions were filled the assistant superintendent position did not go away as it was intended to do.
If Sue Gendron could do those four jobs all at once, I think that our superintendent should be able to handle his one job on his own. By cutting this one unnecessary administrative position; it will enable the school board to reinstate the middle school and freshmen athletic programs that have been targeted for cancellation
 
Kathleen Schuyler
Scarborough