If you live in the 9th district, your School Board choice can be narrowed down to one simple question. If you want to continue with the representation you have now, Bratton is your candidate. If you want something different, Trainor is your candidate. If you live in a cave and don’t know that both of your candidates are well-known figures in the Knox County education community whose careers speak for themselves, then consider the candidates’ responses to the following question.
Should school foundations be allowed to fund specific classes? Bratton’s response was that it wouldn’t be fair to allow that, because it would create have and have not schools. In other words, if we can’t have it, nobody can have it. Trainor stated that if foundations can help schools keep from losing classes, they should be able to do so.
Neither candidate stated that the current funding already gives disproportionately to schools from lower SES communities to balance the communities that can afford to provide more themselves. Why would you cripple the schools that are getting less government resources from using the community resources that eliminate them from additional government funding? That’s like shooting yourself in the foot because shoes don’t fit on your hands. Moreover, why wouldn’t any School Board member have the maturity and intelligence to allow each and every school to be the best that it can be?
The 9th district needs a School Board representative who cares about all schools and all students. That representative needs to be Trainor.
I live in the 9th district, and I’ve got a Trainor sign in my yard. I enthusiastically endorse this post.
Yes, I support Trainor over the current School Board member who was banned from the school he represents! And I believe she will do a great job representing the lower-income schools. But will a Foundation be set up to maintain classes at Austin-East? I don’t think so. I’m afraid the Foundations will be created by the wealthy for the wealthy schools. Your comments?
A-E is an amazing school, but the funding is massively disproportionately in favor of that school already. Until the city revitalizes the community around it and the board makes it a true magnet by giving it classes that aren’t replicated at other high schools in the county, it doesn’t stand a chance at success. I sat in the A-E office for three minutes before another parent said to me that she would have her child transferred if she had transportation. Since she was called to the office for the teen’s behavior issues every week, she needed to stay within walking distance.