December 2021 - School Board Comments
Parent comments made at School Board meetings during December 2021 (names omitted)
Topics: child abuse, mental health
Good evening school board members and Superintendent Hanson!
As we close out another year and prepare for what will hopefully be a brighter and more productive year, I’m left still with many frustrations. One frustration in particular has to do with our kids being left behind...again. This time it isn’t academics, but that is also worrisome with most kids still being way behind. Our kids have suffered more than we will ever know, and many still are. One thing I know that helps kids mentally and physically work through tough times is sports. Kids need to get back to enjoying life and everything that it entails. Which leaves me to my question. Why has the Tahoma school district taken away from the Maple Valley parks and rec program? From my understanding Tahoma has taken away from the parks and rec program by not allowing them to use as many gyms. Anyone who registers their kid to play basketball in the winter pays a fee. This fee goes towards gym rental, referees, etc. The parks and rec program has always paid to have use of these gyms. I’m not sure at this point why many of these gyms were taken away from these kids. By Tahoma limiting gym use, the parks and rec were not able to register even close to the normal amount of players. Registration closed 10 minutes after it opened with the waiting list a mile long for each grade. They were only able to register maybe 500 kids, which is about 300 less than what they could have registered. That is a lot of kids going without...again. Mentally these kids are losing it. The things they loved so much are slowly being taken away, only to be brought back, but in smaller doses. Kids are turning to video games or just losing interest in being active. Here Tahoma has the opportunity to make things right for our kids but chooses not to for some reason. The working sessions you just had last week had a primary focus on wellness and safety. If the district is serious about improving kids' mental health, sports gives kids a greater sense of well-being. So why are you taking actions to prohibit more kids from being involved? I would like to ask the board to really consider what I’ve said and evaluate the use of our gyms. They should be equitable for all.
Thank you!
Topics: COVID-19
What is the plan for the unvaccinated kids that are sent home multiple times for contact tracing and loss of school lessons? What is the science behind sending the vaccinated kids back to class when we know they are carriers and can spread the virus? You can’t pick and choose science. Eventually we need to have a plan for online school for these kids. They have missed too much. Let’s not make choices because we were told. Let’s use our minds and be future ready like we pride ourselves to be.
