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♦ TUESDAY, OCTOBER 3, 2006 4A Jinustmt SJmmral OPINION Daniel F. Evans Editor and Publisher Julie B. Evans Vice President Don Moncrief Foy S. Evans Managing Editor Editor Emeritus Teachers make it work In case you missed it - unlikely with the political race going on - Gov. Sonny Perdue announced this past week that Georgia’s high school graduation rate had surpassed 70 percent for the first time in state history. In fact, he reported in a news release, it had risen nearly eight percentage points since 2003, an increase of 7.5 per centage points. The official graduation rate - with sum mer school graduates figured in - was 70.8 percent. "The state of Georgia has increased our investment in education by $1 billion since 2003," Perdue said, "and simultaneously we are seeing a significant increase in our graduation rate. I strong ly believe that finishing high school, going to col lege or tech nical school and finding that first job are important opportunities that should be available to every young Georgian." We couldn’t agree more, and undoubt edly neither would anyone else. Perdue goes on to list in the release several other steps he has taken to improve education and no doubt they have had an affect - big or small - but we’d like to offer up another reason whey the graduation rate is on the rise. We’ll use an analogy the Air Force quite often does. You can have the best, the most expensive jet in the world, built by the greatest engineers in the world. But, unless you have the best pilot to fly it, it will sim ply be just another airplane. The same can be said for our education system. It takes a teacher to get it off the ground. Letter to toe Editor School safety needs voice I would like to share a few thoughts with your read ers, regarding sidewalks and our schools, and I would like to own my words rather than exercising anonymity. Some of your readers may recall learning about an acci dent in front of Houston County High School, last spring, when a concerned HCHS parent, Sherry, shared her fears with the HCHS PTSA because we advocate for children’s safety, and sidewalks along SR 96 was one aspect of our long-term goals. Long story short, after talking with Sherry, and learning of the accident’s close proximity to the crosswalk, I con tacted Frank Scott, who shared the news of the accident with the Walk Zone committee. I would say, within 10 minutes the walk zone committee determined that par ents who have children in the HCHS Walk Zone could call down to the bus barn and talk to Gladys, to make arrange ments for their children to be bussed to and from HCHS. As of today, sidewalks and bike paths are incorporated into the SR 96 widening project, and eventually the promised flashing lights will be installed as well! I must admit, I was probably the most surprised person in the county, (other than my colleague Cheryl) to learn of a “Walk Zone.” To my knowledge, we have never had crosswalks across SR 96 for our kids, or for the crossing guards who stood in the middle of SR 96 to direct traffic in and out of the most densely populated school in the county. After reading several comments from other local papers, I would like to share something with your readers. I can relate to the level of frustration that parents and the community are experiencing, regarding the seemingly neglect of our children’s safety and well being. However, I would be cautious to attribute the lack of proactive “safety measures,” such as sidewalks, or school bus services to one’s skin color or socioeconomic status. I say this because our local BOE is conducting itself accord ing to the GDOE Transportation Rules, which states “Students riding buses shall live a minimum of See LETTER, page fA 'The state of Georgia has increased our investment hi education by $1 billion since 2003," Perdue said, "and simultaneously we are seeing a significant increase in our graduation rate. I strongly believe that finishing high school, going to college or technical school and finding that first job are important opportunities that should be available to every young Georgian." GAE proves impossible to please Gov. Sonny Perdue probably already knew it, but was remind ed last weekend that no matter what a governor does for our schools and teachers he can’t do enough. The Georgia Association of Educators has endorsed Sonny’s opponent in the gov ernor’s race, though it is difficult for an unbiased observer to say he has not been a good friend to them. He just hasn’t done enough. Governors in the past have learned the same lesson. The GAE has a record of jumping on the bandwagon of guber natorial candidates who promise to out do the incumbent. Once in office, it is almost impossible for a governor to please them. If you look back over the years, you have to admit that this has worked, because education and teach ers are always first in line for more money from the state. (This does not have anything to do with whether they deserve more, because teachers deserve every cent they get, and more.) Skeptics would ask if improvement in results has been commensurate with the ballooning cost of public educa tion. On one hand we are told that the results have been outstanding. On the other hand, we are reminded time and again that we are not doing so well, but more money will solve the problem. Sonny rode into office with teach ers, who had turned against Gov. Roy Barnes, giving him full support. Now he faces an election, in which he is a strong favorite, with the same group against him. That, as they say in Bonaire, is poli tics. ■ ■■ Has it ever occurred to you how “Big deaLnext to my 'Honey-Do' list, running the state would be easy!" Life's ebb, flow felt in farewells, greetings Several years ago, our first grand daughter Kelsey, then about 5, was in our garage. She saw an aluminum hard hat hanging on the wall and asked my wife what it was. “That belonged to my daddy,” JoAn said. “Where is he?” she asked. “He’s dead now.” “Do you miss him?” “Yes.” Kelsey walked over and comforted JoAn. “Well, that’s why God sent me,” the little girl said, “so you won’t be lonely.” Children seem to have everything figured out, even the give and take of life. We went through that eternal flow recently in our family. My sister lost Bill, and the next week, our daughter gave birth to Nolan, Bill had retired from a variety of careers and was spending most of his time on a lake in Alabama, fishing, fishing, fishing. He was a sports fan, a great cook who brewed his own hot sauce, a former barbecue restaurant owner and, before that, a long-haul trucker and a proses- OPINION much gasoline is wasted each day in this country busing students to schools many miles away from their homes to balance enrollment using racial clas sifications? Not only is this a waste of money, it also doesn’t make sense. Neighborhood schools are better for everyone. ■ ■ ■ One of the hardest things about edu cation to understand is declaring some schools “underperforming” and per mitting students to transfer to another school. If a school is underperform ing, why not correct the problem? If a teacher is incompetent, replace him or her. All schools in any district should, in an ideal world, provide the same qual ity education. Bring the “underper forming” up and inspire the best to be better. If I had my druthers, you could move children in the same grades from one school to another in the system and they would not know the differ ence. ■ ■■ What is your take on profiling? I’m for it. It certainly makes more sense than spending time at airports and other places shaking down people who sional wrestler. He was half of a “bad-guy” team in the days before wrestling became the glitter business it is today. (Surfing the Internet, I found a reference that said Gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson once wrote promotional copy for Bill and his fighting partner, but I still have a lot of digging to see whether that is accurate). At the burial, I asked Bill’s longtime friend, a big, genial man known as “Tiny,” what was the worst thing that ever happened to Bill as a wrestler. One night, Tiny said, Bill climbed out of the ring on the wronfe side and was attacked by an angry fan (Bill was a “bad guy,” after all); that was more brutal than anything he ever encoun tered on the mat. Bill was a character, and like most Foy Evans Columnist foyevansl9@cox net m jjg|HL «*• j£mNigfX&'£ : Wfyi &■s£?* vB wELg. *s* jsfgS&greaHp >'■ .*& v gMUf Glynn Moore Columnist Morris News Service HOUSTON DAILY JOURNAL obviously are not potential Islamic ter rorists. If it turns out that I look like one of the terrorists I’m in favor of being profiled, too. Just don’t waste time and money in the name of politi cal correctness. ■ ■■ I’ve noticed something disturbing during the present political campaign season. Candidates are being attacked because some time in their lives they said something “insensitive”, which is silly and certainly should not be one of the criteria used to determine if a candidate is worthy of being elected to represent us. We ought to vote for can didates on the basis of qualifications and positions they take on important issues. It looks like we are going in the opposite direction...fast! ■ ■■ I remember when candidates for con gress ran on what are called “bread basket issues”, things like the economy and other issues that affect our lives on a daily basis. This time around it appears that the war against terrorism and the war in Iraq are dominating the national debate. Everything else seems to be placed on the back burner. In nor mal (what is normal?) times the fact that the economy is growing steadily and unemployment is at a record low would be enough for incumbents to ride to victory. These issues are being ignored and, when the chips are down, winners will be the candidates that voters believe will do the best job protecting them in this time of peril. Not everyone agrees what that entails. characters, he knew lots of people, many of whom had their own stories to tell. The funeral home was filled with flowers from folks he had known for decades: fellow truckers, fishermen and friends. Five days after Bill’s burial, Nolan weighed in at 7 pounds, 9 ounces. His stories are yet to be written, his friends yet to be met and made and kept. He’s been quiet so far, keeping his thoughts to himself. Unlike many babies, he has a little man’s face, and he has plenty of hair. Covering that hair for the trip home from the hospital was a University of Georgia skullcap, courtesy of his dad. Dennis, being a first-time father, just barely survived the birthing experi ence, according to my wife, who was in the delivery room with him and Kylie. If Nolan doesn’t become a Bulldogs fan and attend UGA, it will not be his father’s fault. As I write this, the family is getting ready to converge on the house to welcome a new life in, just as families convened a week earlier to bid a well known life farewell. Reach Glynn Moore at glynn. moore@augustachronicle.com