We are students in Oak Park’s District 97, writing from an up-close-and-personal point of view about the upcoming referendum vote. We have been informed of proposed cuts to our school system. Frankly, we are appalled at the list of teachers, programs and activities on the proverbial chopping block. Among the most outrageous are the CAST program, art and instrumental music, libraries, foreign languages, even the school secretary. From our point of view, we see these cuts as basically begging children to hate school.
Reviewing the list of cuts, we noticed that one of our own teachers, Dr. Laura Swartzbaugh, was one of the many faculty members proposed to be let go. We are surprised at this, owing to the fact that she is a superb educator and one of our favorite teachers. She goes above and beyond what is expected of a teacher. Rather than teaching dully from the social studies textbook — owing to its less-than-satisfactorily thorough information — Dr. Swartzbaugh instead took children’s natural interests in technology and gave us something to look forward to each day. We speak of the incredibly enjoyable Historybook, an interactive website dedicated to opening kids’ eyes and harnessing their creativity through historically set social networking.
Not only is Dr. Swartzbaugh amazingly creative and understanding of her students’ interests, she is highly qualified, holding a Ph.D. in history. She shares her wide range of knowledge with us and our peers. She is fun, humorous and fair. Recently she introduced what she calls “weekly warm-up,” a way to get our brains working and ready for class by setting aside a few minutes each Monday for us to dance to our favorite music.
Dr. Swartzbaugh has a no-bullying policy: In her classroom, we feel safe and free to speak our minds without fear. Through the course of the year, Dr. Swartzbaugh is focusing our studies around one central “big question”: “What is worth fighting for?” This question framed how we approached historical events such as the American Revolution and the War of 1812. However, Dr. Swartzbaugh encourages us to find meaning in everything we learn through this question, and ultimately connect it to every aspect of our lives.
Right now, to us, this referendum is the answer to Dr. Swartzbaugh’s big question. We believe that defending our right to have access to the arts, foreign language classes, music and especially wonderful teachers like Dr. Swartzbaugh in our school is of the utmost importance.
We ask you to please keep Dr. Swartzbaugh in mind when you vote on the referendum on April 5. Know that your choice will affect her, our peers, the community and all of the students in District 97. We hope you keep an open mind, taking our opinion into account, on behalf of the students and faculty members of Oak Park.
Humankind — especially children like us — has a natural thirst for knowledge, creativity and enlightenment. Why would anyone want to diminish our means of getting them?
Freya Trefonides and Arne Olson
Seventh graders at Percy Julian Middle School
