A step backward

Dear Editor:

According to the March 6 edition of the TIMES NEWS Mr. Reinbold attended the Jim Thorpe Area School District board meeting. The article stated that you are pushing for a half time school at CCTI. Why?

This sounds like a decision Mr. Marro would make; he did not know how to supervise a technical school and neither do you.

You will never understand the hundreds of man hours that were spent by George Seiler, faculty and staff, Senator James Rhoades, Congressman Kanjorski; Dr. Moody, director of the vocational technical school, in Harrisburg and myself. We spent three years working on scheduling, visiting other full time vo techs and surveying every student attending or planning to attend CCTI.

According to the surveys, the students wanted a full-time technical school. They complained of how much time is wasted busing to and from the schools. They felt like they were in no man's land. I know how that feels. I was a student in the first year in 1966 when the vo tech opened. We were called "tech rats" and our sending school would never allow us to be involved in the decision making for our senior year plans.

In the late 70s, early 80s, the sending schools used us as a dumping ground for their behavior problem students. Then when I came on board as the new guidance counselor, Mr. Seiler and I decided to change the image of the technical school and the students wanted to be at the technical school full time.

You, Mr. Reinbold, were the first of the full time English instructors and you were paid for two weeks to provide a class presentation to coincide with each technical area. You saw and heard how the students really welcomed the full time technical school.

It looks to me like you are heading backward to the 20th century instead of the 21st and beyond. I cannot believe that the CCTI operating committee would go along wit this idea! But on the other hand, I have discovered that most school board members and operating committee members treat principals and directors like God. Our own operating committee allowed Dr. Marro to have food made at Panther Valley High School and bused to CCTI, when CCTI has a culinary arts program where the students do hands-on training and prepare the lunches for students and staff. The seniors were in charge of the restaurant.

My questions to you Mr. Reinbold are: Why waste our school tax money on bringing food in from another school district when we had the resources to do it ourselves? Mr. Reinbold is your intention to contribute to the unemployment in Carbon County? Are you going half time along with the rest of your staff?

In conclusion, we need to keep in mind that the most important equation is mind and hands on equal students success. They need to be taught together. I hope Mr. Reinhold that you and the operating committee will truly consider what is best for the students.

Corrie Miller

Jim Thorpe