To The Editor,
As a lifelong resident of the City of Coatesville, a graduate of Coatesville Area Senior High School, and a taxpayer to the Coatesville Area School District, I would like to protest the decision of the Coatesville Area School Board and School Administration for their decision to eliminate the ROTC Program from the 2012-2013 School Year Budget. I think the Coatesville School Board is making a huge mistake in eliminating this program based on the fact that they need $157,000 to keep the program running. It seems to me that the School Board, regardless of the cost to continue this program, is not living up to the “Mission Statement” that they post on their website which reads as follows:
“The Mission of the Coatesville Area School District, a learning community rich in diversity and committed to excellence, is to educate all students by providing rigorous educational opportunities to become responsible, productive, lifelong learners in a global society.”
When the School Board made the announcement not to continue this program due to budget restraints, the Coatesville Community Education Foundation went to the School Board to request that they keep the program. They were told by the School Board if they wanted this program to continue they had until August 12, 2012 to go out and raise the money.
In a recent newspaper article in the “Daily Local newspaper” Sunday, July 8, 2012 an article appeared as follows:
“Almost halfway to their deadline, leaders of a parents group raising money to keep the Air Force Junior Reserve Officers Training Corp in the Coatesville Area School District remain optimistic they can raise the needed funds.
District officials told the program’s supporters on June 12 that taxpayers could not afford to keep financing the program and they must raise $157,000 by Aug. 12 to save it.
- More recently, the school board said the supporters could submit a check by Aug. 13, because Aug. 12 is a Sunday.
- As of Saturday, the ROTC supporters have raised about $52,000.
- “I am happy with where we are and still think it is realistic for us to raise the money,” parent Safiya Edwards said.
- Edwards said the group has been visiting local businesses to collect funds.
- Edwards said these events raise awareness and funds but are not their primary source of revenue. She said donations from individuals, businesses and foundations are the primary source of funding. The group is exploring grants from various organizations, she said, but some grants take longer than others to come through.
- Edwards said enthusiasm among parents and cadets in the program remains high. She said each week a group of about 20 parents meets to discuss their plans for raising money. A group of about 20 cadets also meets each Monday to discuss ways to keep the group going.
- School board President J. Neil Campbell said in June that the board must know that all the funds to run the program have been secured by August, because it cannot abandon the program in the middle of the year if it realizes later there is a shortage of funds.”
As a taxpayer in the Coatesville Area School District I take offense to the paragraph in the above article which states, “District officials told the program’s supporters that taxpayers could not afford to keep financing the program.”
When did the Coatesville School District or the School Board poll the taxpayers to make such a statement? I certainly never received any correspondence in the mail that would support this statement. I guess one could say that we should be glad to see that the Coatesville School Board has the taxpayers in mind to save them money, but I wish they would ask the taxpayers before doing something like this. I feel there are a lot of other things that could have been eliminated to save a mere $157,000 for such a valuable program. As a taxpayer, I want to see our tax dollars spent to support educational programs that teach young people honor and respect and to have opportunities that can help them achieve future goals. The R.O.T.C. Program helps young people receive scholarships that perhaps otherwise would not happen. I wonder if the School Board members had opposition among themselves when talking about the elimination of this program. It makes one think about the events that took place at Penn State University – – administrators knew what was going on but no one was willing to step up to the plate to stop it!
Let’s Explore what Is Air Force ROTC:
It is a challenge. It is an opportunity. It is a head-start on a lifetime of success within the Air Force and in everything you choose to do.
Air Force ROTC is a college program offered at over 1,000 colleges and universities across the U.S. that prepares you to become an Air Force officer, or an officer in the U.S. Army, U.S. Navy and Coast Guard as well.
What does this mean to you? It means:
- • The opportunity to get the money you need for college
- • Making the most out of your college experience and your life
- • The chance to earn a college degree while working toward becoming an officer in the United States Air Force
- • The chance to experience once-in-a-lifetime opportunities
But know it will not be easy. Air Force ROTC provides you with a challenging program to hone your time management, physical fitness and analytical skills – and helps you push yourself to achieve your goals.
But for those who are up to the challenge, the rewards last a lifetime.
The R.O.T.C. PA 71 Program at Coatesville Area Senior High School is the beginning of all mentioned above. The young cadets in the Coatesville Program learn much from this program. This program teaches young people respect, obedience, honor, and the students actually go out into our elementary and junior high schools to talk to young people about smoking, use of drugs and alcoholic drinks explaining how the long term use of these substances damage your health in later years. Their presence to other young people shows their dedication to the Coatesville area community and is an example of how proud they are to be an American. They take trips to Washington D.C. and other places to experience first hand how others are running this great country we live in. The Air Force ROTC is an opportunity for local Coatesville students to receive scholarships to all branches of the military.
I personally know three students who participated in the ROTC Program at the Coatesville Area School District in the last three years, and each student upon graduation received scholarships with the Air Force and Naval Academy valued at over $450,000.00 each. When you add those three scholarships up, the dollar value is $1,350,000.00 and as a taxpayer I would say this is an example of how valuable this $157,000 program is to the ROTC students upon graduation. The young people who receive these scholarships must seek support from political people such as Senator Casey, Arlene Specter – U.S. Senator, Congressman Gerlach, Senator Rafferty and others to be nominated for these scholarships. As a voter, I wonder why these elected officials are not giving support to help keep this program running.
The value of the Air Force R.O.T.C. Program is certainly worth $157,000. I think the Coatesville Area School District Board should be ashamed of themselves to say that the “taxpayers don’t want to support this program” – – they are wrong! We are living in times where public officials seem to be making “bad decisions” in moving our young people forward. Stop trying to remove programs that teach our young people to be proud to be an American and for those who have benefited from this type of program to go on to be leaders in this great country. Our young people are the future – – what type of leaders will we have in the next 10 – 15 years. Go back and re-read the Coatesville Area School District’s “Mission Statement” – – they aren’t living up to it with the elimination of this program.
I would like to ask all taxpayers in the Coatesville Area School District to become more actively involved in how their school tax money is being spent to ensure outstanding programs like the ROTC continue. We need to pay closer attention.
I hope that anyone that might read this article will also agree that this ROTC Program should not be eliminated from the Coatesville Area School District and if you agree please let your voice be heard.
Sandra D. Steen
Coatesville School District Taxpayer
