Guest ViewThe Opinion of Tim Foley
It takes a village to raise a child, or so the saying goes.
But what happens to that child when the village he or she lives
in becomes stagnant? The moratorium has done more than just end
residential growth, it has slowed commercial growth as well,
hurting the city economically as businesses who might have
considered coming to Hollister look elsewhere. Both public and
private businesses have suffered. But few places have been as hard
hit by the moratorium as our local schools.
Guest ViewThe Opinion of Tim Foley
It takes a village to raise a child, or so the saying goes.
But what happens to that child when the village he or she lives in becomes stagnant? The moratorium has done more than just end residential growth, it has slowed commercial growth as well, hurting the city economically as businesses who might have considered coming to Hollister look elsewhere. Both public and private businesses have suffered. But few places have been as hard hit by the moratorium as our local schools.
Schools receive impact fees from developers when new homes are built as a way of offsetting increased costs due to growth. Districts, in turn, base annual budgets in part on projected growth figures. When an area experiences flat growth over an extended period of time, those fees become non-existent.
So how do districts deal with this problem? By cutting back on staff, eliminating thriving instructional or enrichment programs, and increasing class size. The end result may save money, but who is hurt the most? Our children.
We must all try to work creatively towards a solution like they have done in Lincoln, a small community in Northern California. I have spoken with the superintendent of schools for the Western Placer Unified School District. He has experienced first-hand the benefits of a Sun City community as well as its positive influence on a school district that faced budget cutbacks and curriculum changes.
Through the SCHOOLS (Sun City Helping Our Outstanding Local Schools) program at Sun City Lincoln Hills, there are over a hundred Sun City residents who have volunteered more than 400 hours of their time each week in the local schools and have helped more than 1,065 students reach their academic goals. SCHOOLS provides volunteers who help to enrich the classroom learning environment, enhance special events, and extend specific educational experiences.
Del Webb’s proposal for a Sun City community is an opportunity for us to bring a positive change to our community. It is up to the voters of Hollister to help us move forward. In order to move our community and our children successfully into the future we need to examine carefully the opportunities knocking on our door.
It’s time to get people thinking about what it will take to help our students and our community. After all, we all live in the same village. If we can’t work together, how will we ever be able to raise that child?
Tim Foley is the San Benito County Schools Superintendent.
