Dear members of the Janesville Board of Education,
I write to you with some concern over the employment status of teachers in the Janesville School District. I urge you to negotiate with teachers and other employees concerning new contracts. Otherwise, I hope that you can give teachers nearing retirement age (or there already) straightforward and binding guidance to help them decide whether to submit their retirement by your April 15 deadline.
In regard to this situation, I want to say emphatically how important Janesville’s education has been to me. I was born and raised in Janesville, and attended Madison Elementary School, Franklin Middle School, and Parker High School. While I experienced the ups and downs that any student does, I know with a very high level of confidence how truly exceptional my teachers have been. Whether it was the incredible world experiences of Mr. Van Altena in seventh grade Social Studies, the confidence of Mr. Quaerna in eight grade American History, the rigor of Mr. Kerbel in AP American History, or the determination of Mr. John Eyster to introduce me and others to the importance of politics in AP American Government (we called this enthusiasm Potomac fever), I rely on the lessons of my social studies teachers every day. I do so professionally as a professor of political science.
But if I were to focus only on the many abilities of Janesville’s social studies teachers, I would really be selling the Janesville Schools District short. So moving and capable were my mathematics and science teachers, including Mr. Groth in Physics and Mr. Casanova in AP Chemistry that I was spoilt for choice over my future career. Indeed, I originally entered UW-Madison intending to major in physics – a path I would have followed, were it not for a run in with political life at the Wisconsin state capital. Further, my life would be forever impoverished if not for my many art and music classes.
And still I have not said enough to characterize how solid a Janesville education is. Since graduating from UW-Madison, I pursued an MA degree and then a PhD across the pond in England. I taught at some of the country’s strongest politics departments, including the University of Oxford’s. Since then, I have moved with my Korean wife to South Korea, and teach at a strongly ranked political science department here. My students in Korea emerge from one of the world’s most highly regarded and intense education systems, and many of my Oxford students attended celebrated primary and secondary schools (equivalent to our K-12). I have thorough experience with exceptional students from these estimable systems, yet I remain confident in the view that Janesville’s teachers educate and inspire with the best of them. I know this from personal experience, but also from the achievements of my graduating classmates from 1999, whose careers include children’s author, politician, lawyer, businesswoman, teacher, sheriff’s deputy, pharmacist, and historical researcher, just to list a few.
It is clear to me not only that Janesville has gifted educators, but also that Janesville’s educational system is instrumental in its students’ success. Without a flourishing school district, and the support of the city and the Board of Education, even fantastic teachers can feel marginalized. But with a system that treats teachers as professionals worthy of negotiation, Janesville’s educational excellence can continue.
Thus, it is crucial to maintain an atmosphere of real collaboration between teachers, the school district, and the Board of Education, especially when differences of opinion seem most intractable. This gives everyone real stake-holding in the school district, even if teachers lose a difficult negotiation. This sense of belonging is necessary for our teaching professionals to continue playing to their strengths. We need their pride in their work, and we simply can’t get that from the particular terms of an employment contract. But we can lose all of this if contracts are formulated in silence without real dialogue.
Sincerest regards,
Dr. Benjamin Thompson
