I respectfully disagree with Firoozeh Vali regarding the increase in the school budget (The News, February 18). Property values in West Windsor and Plainsboro are good because of the good schools. The WW-P School District certainly has one of the most successful educational districts in the state and in the country.
A big part of the success of WW-P students is that we have opportunities to participate in things like art and music. I participate in an arts program called Cognetics, which is provided by the National Talent Network that is dedicated to serving the needs of gifted and talented students (www.eirc.org). Participating in Cognetics has taught me teamwork, creative problem solving, fact and problem analysis, idea generation, solution selection — all wrapped up in a performance that is shared at state expositions with other Cognetics teams from all over New Jersey.
One of the key differences between those who meet success and those who do not is that successful, productive people can think out of the box, research, think independently, work collaboratively in groups, manage time, and analyze facts and observations. The suggested budget increase referred to by Firoozeh Vali is less than 3 pertcent for a district that educates thousands of students. If this small increase helps WW-P maintain the excellent programs that students like me appreciate, it is worth it.
