Dr. David Hopson
Superintendent’s Corner
One measure of educational success is a student’s ability to apply knowledge and skills to solving a particular problem, particularly if it is a real life issue that isn’t ‘taught’ in the classroom. In recent weeks, Gateway’s students have expressed much concern over the fee charged to park on campus and have addressed this issue in multiple ways while maintaining decorum and working towards a positive outcome. As we did when the parking fees were first set nearly a decade ago, the district and high school administration worked in an open manner with the student council to look at the issue, consider alternatives, and reach consensus.
At this point, the administration and student council have come up with a series of steps that both make it easier to earn parking discounts for specific behaviors and provide a level of progressive action for those individuals who refuse to follow the rules. I need to mention that we did not address the amount of the parking fee directly, as that is set by the school committee and therefore needs action from the school committee to change. Rather, as the student council and administration did many years ago, we addressed the how and why of the parking fee. The school committee will take up the issue of parking fees (and by extension, other fees charged by the district) at its meeting tonight.
So, if we didn’t change the fee, what actions did the administration and student council take? I believe the process was a learning experience for everyone as student council members took input from students, and then met with the high school administration and myself to review issues and brainstorm potential responses. After discussing the issues, the causes, and the potential solutions, the next step was to draft a protocol that would address the concerns.
This protocol was drafted and shared with student council members prior to our second meeting so that everyone could review and reflect on the proposed solutions and develop any questions and raise any concerns. The student council and administration then met to provide an open forum for answering questions, alleviating concerns, and modifying the protocol where needed. I am pleased that the process worked well and reflected well on the students’ ability to discuss the issue in a deliberative manner, work collaboratively, and use multiple leadership skills – things that appear to be lacking at the national level related to Congressional action.
Once the overall changes were discussed and agreed to, the group moved onto the implementation phase. In discussing how to implement these changes, the student council provided support for sharing the new process with everyone who drove, agreed on ways in which this information could be provided to new drivers as well as shared with parents and the community, and agreed that putting this into place this semester would benefit the largest number of student drivers. Once the school committee has resolved the base parking fee issue, the student council and administration will move forward with informing the relevant parties of the revised parking protocol.
Overall, I am pleased with the process and the interaction with the students, proud of the leadership skills and willingness of student council members to openly discuss and support the implementation of a mutually developed protocol, and thank the staff and student body for their understanding as we work through this process.
