Editor:

This letter is addressed to the Bee County Chamber of Commerce Public Affairs Council and Pam Stuart. I want to start by saying “Shame on you!” You are supposed to represent the citizens of Bee County! However, a recent letter you sent to the business community indicates that you truly are not concerned about Bee County or its citizens.

To quote your letter: “The Chamber of Commerce’s mission is to stimulate economic growth and we believe outstanding schools are a crucial tool in the ongoing development of Bee County. Due to the low performance of both of our secondary schools, it is the Chamber’s position to not support the proposed $0.06 tax increase for Beeville ISD on the Nov. 4th ballot. We encourage the business community to vote ‘no’ on that ballot item.”

Seriously? Your mission is to stimulate economic growth? How are you supporting economic growth if we don’t have the quality schools that you believe are so crucial to attract new people to Beeville? Voting no on the proposed tax increase isn’t going to solve the problem; it’s going to exacerbate it!

Your letter indicates you have not done your “homework.” If you were to look at the areas that the two campuses you malign failed to meet AYP, it is a small piece of the big puzzle and doesn’t indicate poor performance on the part of A.C. Jones High School and Moreno Middle School. As a matter of fact, both campuses just recently received recognition from TEA. A.C. Jones got gold performance awards in recommended high school program and comparable improvement in math. Moreno got a gold performance award for commended performance in reading/ELA. Did you bother to consider any of this when you decided to vote no?

The tax increase is not all about employee salaries; it is also about funding programs that lead to student success. Many of these programs will have to be cut without the needed funding. Many of these programs are also what help attract new families to our schools. There are several academic programs that help all campuses be successful that are at risk of being cut without the funding. This also involves staffing cuts, which could lead to people leaving the district and the community because of lack of job opportunities. How is that stimulating economic growth? Also, can you imagine a middle school or high school without the extracurricular activities that give our students a well-rounded education? Any and all extra programs that are currently in place in all of our schools are at risk of being cut due to lack of state funding. And now we know how supportive you are of our schools.

This isn’t about a raise that the state of Texas failed to give its teachers. This is about keeping the doors open and educating the children of our community, our future. As a parent of college age children who attended BISD their entire school career, and who are both getting degrees in education and might like to finish their education and return to Beeville, I can honestly say I would not encourage them to return home as the Chamber does not seem to support them in any way.

The Chamber’s letter also states that they applaud the district’s successes in the elementary schools. Really? I would like an explanation from the members of the board on how they can applaud me in one sentence and then say in the next line that they do not support me! I invite all of them to contact me and explain their position.