Open letter to Superintendent Bowers

Dear Superintendent:

As the mother of a recent graduate and wife of an alumnus of Hamilton Central School, I am compelled to question your recent decision to make it possible for HCS students to opt out of listening to President Obama’s speech. I can think of no supportable rationale for your decision. In fact, I can think of many reasons why the students of HCS might benefit from the inspirational and apolitical message of President Obama’s speech.

What could possibly be controversial about the message that our children should work hard in school and obtain a good education so that they and our country may prosper! It can only be assumed that it is the messenger and not the message that you believe people will find objectionable. I and others in our community would be interested to hear why you think so and how you arrived at your decision. Whether or not people agree with his social policies or his politics, Barak Obama is the elected President of the United States. The office, if not the man, deserves a modicum of respect from all of us.

The other aspect of your decision that disturbs me is the message that it conveys to the students. You are sending them a clear message that they do not have to listen to anyone with whom they may disagree. Moreover, you are sending them the message that it is acceptable to decide NOT to listen to someone before they have even heard what the person has to say. It is tantamount to my telling my son or daughter that they don’t need to listen to their teachers because I don’t like what they represent or how they look. How well could HCS fulfill its role as an educational institution if the parents of its students were to tell their children that they can ignore or not listen to you or to their teachers?

In short, I am dismayed and disappointed in your choice and frankly I question your judgment. If the decision was yours alone, it was horribly ill advised. If your decision was the result of pressure from others, it is even more tragic that you failed to exert leadership in the face of the extremist clap-trap that passes for news coverage about President Obama’s speech. Either way, you are a poor role model for the children that we placed in your charge.

Sincerely,

Jane Welsh

Hamilton

7 Comments on "Open letter to Superintendent Bowers"

Joanne Lloyd on Wed, 9th Sep 2009 11:05 am

Open letter to Superintendent Bowers,
Dear Mrs. Bowers:
I have read the letter submitted by Jane Welsh over and over and concluded that she hit it right on the head and I couldn’t write it in a better way. I am sick in my stomach when I hear people acting in a manner that in my opinion is not the American way. Turning his speech into a political ploy is totally unacceptable. I believe that racism is worse than ever in this country and it needs to stop. I thought that you want children to work very hard and do the best that they can do. I am pretty sure that you do want that and am sure that our president wants that too.
Sincerely, Joanne Lloyd

David Berkey on Thu, 10th Sep 2009 1:01 pm

Dr. Bowers:

I too am outraged over the decision not to let our kids hear a talk from our President. It is especially difficult for me to understand how you, with a Phd, would deny access to a talk which is all about supporting education. Was there some fear about our kids being “exposed” to this President?

Sincerely, sad and angry: Dave Berkey

Susan Tallman on Thu, 10th Sep 2009 8:41 pm

Please don’t let this sad debacle be a prelude to a round of robust censorship of curriculum, library books etc.

You job, Dr. Bowers, is to help our students become good citizens and critical thinkers. To do that, they must be exposed to *lots* of ideas and opinions. We need thinkers, not sheep.

Susan T., Hamilton

Sylvia Loop McSwain on Mon, 14th Sep 2009 12:46 pm

Dear Superintendent Bowers:

As a Hamilton taxpayer, former teacher and an alumna of Hamilton Central School, I am dismayed and disappointed in your decision to allow students to chose whether they listened to President Obama’s back-to-school speech. It was not a policy speech, nor was the President trying to indoctrinate the children to his political beliefs. His message was to encourage students to persist and succeed in school by working hard, setting educational goals and taking responsibility for their learning. Do you see anything wrong with that message? He was also not our first leader to try to inspire students, as both Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush gave back-to-school addresses.

Having all students listen to the President’s speech allows for a subsequent lesson whereby students can discuss how they felt regarding Mr. Obama’s message. I am also curious to know what the students who opted not to listen to our country’s leader’s speech were doing at the time.

I totally agree with Ms. Welsh when she wrote that you are sending the message to students that they do not have to listen to anyone with whom they might disagree. In my thinking that could include all people in authority, teachers and superintendents of schools.

Sincerely,
Sylvia Loop McSwain
September 14, 2009

Sylvia Loop McSwain on Mon, 14th Sep 2009 1:23 pm

I was dismayed at Dr. Bowers’ decision to allow students to chose whether they listened to President Obama’s back-to-school speech. It was not a policy speech, nor was the President trying to indoctrinate the students to his political beliefs. His message was to encourage students to persist in school through goals, hard work and responsibility. What does the superintendent find wrong in that message? Having all students listen to the President’s speech allows for a subsequent lesson whereby students can discuss how they felt regarding Obama’s message. Also, what were the students who opted out of the speech doing instead? I totally agree with Ms. Welsh who wrote that Bowers is sending the message to students that they do not have to listen to anyone with whom they disagree, That could include all people in authority.

Charlie Naef on Wed, 16th Sep 2009 12:12 pm

In the interest of full public disclosure, we are entitled to know the names of the individuals who asked Superintendent Bowers to excuse their own children or someone else’s children from listening to President Obama’s speech. His brief and eloquent remarks conveyed the message that I’m confident the school administration, the school board and the teachers want all students to hear and internalize.

Who are the students, if any, who opted not to listen to our President? We are entitled to know.

John Blackmore on Tue, 22nd Sep 2009 10:06 pm

Interesting that Superintendent Bowers has never responded personally or publicly to these concerns. Has anyone heard from her? Or does she not care to respond?

Open letter to Superintendent Bowers

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