Our Schools Are Good--But They Can Be Much Better

We believe that our dedicated teachers, our Board of Education and our fellow Montclair citizens want the same things:

• To close the achievement gap;
• To raise the bar for all students;
• To provide teachers with necessary professional development.

We believe that improvements are needed throughout our district, in the classrooms as well as at Central Office. 
As well served as many of our children are by the district, the status quo is not acceptable. In March of this year, we were given a more complete perspective of the achievement gap in this district. Together we can do better.

Our district is not perfect, nor do we expect that all the changes we are seeing in the district will be perfect. As both BOE members and numerous administrators - including Dr. MacCormack - have said: we will be carefully and continuously evaluating the results of what we are doing, constantly seeking further improvement.  Let's give this a chance, knowing that we will be making even more improvements in the future.

Sadly, recent meetings concerning our schools have become contentious, heated and difficult.  Many parents have conveyed their concern about the tenor and rancor of these meetings--that it prevents meaningful, open-minded conversation from taking place and creates an atmosphere that distracts us from the important work of improving our schools.

It is important to note that improving the quality of our schools preserves the values of all our homes, including those of the many Montclair residents who don't currently have children in the public schools.  As a community, we are ALL truly in this together. 

We sign here to indicate our support for the Board of Education, Dr. MacCormack and the rest of our district's current administration. We understand that changes occurring at both the State and Town level mean a lot of work for our teachers. In fact, many of our teachers dedicated this past summer to help draft the new curricula for the district. We cannot express our appreciation enough for our hard working teachers, what they've done, and their commitment to our children. They, too, have our support.

We believe that as a community we can be patient, reasonable, thoughtful and constructive as we move forward. There is great work to be done. Let’s set forth together, with respect and civility, toward our shared goals.