Focus On Finances, Not Past Grievances: Letter

Re: It’s about people’s experiences and independent data, not “alternate facts”

I couldn't help but read the recent letter from a former school committee member and be disappointed in the diversion of attention away from a decades long underinvestment in our city and schools. The letter did not address the overall fiscal condition of our city or schools. Not once did the author suggest any solutions for the problems that so many of our friends and neighbors have experienced themselves in our city and schools.

The data that is so willingly dismissed is data from the state Department of Revenue, that shows we tax significantly less than our neighbor and peer communities. It shows that, unlike our peers, we have over a 90% residential tax base. And, data from the state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education that shows our teachers are paid less (Melrose ranks 279 out of 316 across the whole state), our schools spend nearly the lowest level per student in the state,

our dangerously low net school spending (hovering at only 4% above the bare minimum required by the state for a decade), and that our enrollment is expanding rapidly (220 new students since 2016). There is also data from the state Group Insurance Commission that shows health premiums for the city increasing at more than 3-4% per year, while our city wide tax increases are capped at 2.5%.

What I didn't hear either from the letter was any acknowledgement of the concerns of residents over the level of our school spending, how to solve teacher retention, the classroom space crunch, and the investment we want to make in our city. I, along with many hundreds of other Melrosians, have been speaking to neighbors for months about the data, listening to stories from parents that all too often tell the same thing, "My kid's teacher left mid-year, it was devastating," or, "My kids are in classrooms of almost 30 students." Or, the many thousands of parents that were forced to see text books reused year after year, the hundreds of parents that have volunteered their time to provide basic school services like an in-school library. I guess it is a lot easier for me to believe that my neighbor is telling me the truth about what their child is experiencing, about the importance of having a public library, about their need for important services offered by the senior center, about families that rely on support from substance abuse counselors, than in “alternate facts.”

But, let's also remember what is at stake for this election. We are voting on finances, not on a school committee. While we have the opportunity this fall to place that vote as well, the vote on April 2 is only about whether we want to give our schools and city the financial means to be successful for years to come, not about past grievances. Many thousands of us fighting for this investment understand the real choice in front of us right now, and I hope everyone will. The fiscal year starts on July 1, and while we have many important decisions to make in November, Melrose is at a critical financial crossroads now and we need to make that choice now.

Matt Hartman

Allen Place