I have read Superintendent Alan Lee’s letter regarding Good2Great and was stunned by the adversarial tone and pejorative comments. G2G is led and supported by a cross section of Fairhopers seeking excellence in our schools. Leaders consist of the old and young — business leaders, current and former teachers, a former school board member, several former City Council members, and community volunteers — all sharing a vision for our children. We are all products of democracy, engaged in the study of possibilities and in dialog with the community regarding a controversial idea: locally controlled schools. Our culture values healthy, civil debate and teaches children to think, problem solve and respect others. This process and people presenting an idea opposing his are viewed by Superintendent Lee as “petty,” “laughable,” and “an offense,” reflecting a harsh attitude which stifles progress even when all participants share the same goal: how to create a culture of excellence for our children and community.

The tone introduced here in this controversial issue returns me to my early days as a teacher at Fairhope High School. In the late ‘70s and early ‘80s, FHS was approaching 1,800 students at its downtown campus on the hill. It was the only high school on the Eastern Shore, and students from Daphne and Spanish Fort attended here. Our sports teams were tops. We also had a fenced-in area where students with written permission could smoke at break and lunch. Their Coke and candy machines helped pay for office staff. The teachers’ lounge was so smoky that non-smokers dashed in to their mailboxes and to the messy mimeograph machines, and out. At that time there were no art or choir classes, no plays being performed. There were many fine administrators, teachers and students, certainly, but the promise of top education was not there. Status quo reigned. When several Fairhope committee members addressed the need for a new high school on the Eastern Shore, county leaders replied that there would “not be a new school built in this century.” We were in a holding pattern and morale was low.

Enter a visionary, Nelda Schultz, who assessed the educational situation and pointed to the elephant in the room: Baldwin County Schools needed leadership with vision. Nelda ran and was narrowly elected to the school board. She established relationships with other board members who were also passionate and hardworking, and they conducted the first national search for a superintendent. Enter Larry Newton, another visionary. He toured the schools, met the frontline, and saw the needs for stronger curriculum, for greater respect of diversity, and for new schools. During Superintendent Newton’s tenure, Daphne High School opened its doors and more schools followed. He created an atmosphere in which teachers and parents and students were respected and given permission to discuss different ideas rather than be chastised for independent thinking. The air became healthy on campus. The community’s respect for the arts was rewarded and art and choir faculty were hired. The extracurricular drama club produced two plays a year, involving art and band students as well as talented actors. Pride in community soared and standards were elevated.

Today we find ourselves at another juncture in Fairhope. The town and county have grown and prospered, with 45 schools (seven high schools) and seven school board members. Each board member represents a diverse and proud community. Should one group or community be denigrated because it seeks, in the democratic American spirit, to provide local leadership accountable to and in harmony with its character? The dialog belongs here in our neighborhoods and schools without fear of reprisals on the street or in the workplace. The county system will not weaken if Fairhope moves; the county will move on with its business.

G2G proposes that, in our current county system of 28,000 students and 3,100 employees, a local school system in Fairhope has the most effective means of empowering the superintendent, principals, teachers and parents to work toward excellence for all of its 4,300 students. If that is elitist, so be it.

PAM TURNER

Fairhope