Opinion: Please Consider Voting 'Yes' On Ballot Question 1

If you plan to vote “No” to Question 1 and/or for a candidate that does not plan to fully support the Brookline public schools, then we ask that you please reconsider. You may not think that this vote directly impacts you because, for instance, your kids go to private school or your kids are grown, but you will indeed benefit from a vote in support of Brookline's schools.

First, overcrowded and underfunded schools will lower your house value. When you sell your house, the most important room to a buyer may be in the public school down the street. What sets Brookline apart is our proximity to Boston, our great schools and our socially conscious community.

Second, weakening the schools will also widen the gap between Brookline families that send their kids to private and public schools. A distressed school system will put more pressure on other social services and ultimately force those unable to pay for private school — but fortunate enough to have other choices — to move, further disrupting our town.

Third, we are a community that works together to solve problems, and we all benefit as a result. For example, imagine a devastating water main break impacts only one neighborhood, and requires significant funds to fix it. Even if my family did not live in that neighborhood, we would still be willing to contribute for the betterment of Brookline as a whole.

The kids who will benefit most from your support are not nameless and faceless — they are the same kids you see at Wegmans and Larz Anderson Park. The kid currently getting extra reading help in a noisy, crowded hallway (because there is no extra quiet space) is your neighbor. She, and your community as a whole, is on the ballot. Let's vote "yes" for her benefit and the betterment of Brookline.

Thank you, neighbors.