I attended the Children’s Concert at High School South on December 6, while superintendent Aderhold and assistant superintendent Martin Smith (joined later by Board president Tony Fleres) went to the Sunday Chinese School to meet the Chinese parents there, in an attempt to cast out the deep doubts and strong oppositions among the community to the planned changes to the A&E math program.
I really wish Mr. Aderhold and Mr. Fleres were at the Children’s Concert instead.
For one thing, this meeting attempt had apparently failed, not because the parents were short of questions or shy of asking, but because Mr. Aderhold and Mr. Fleres were steadfast on pushing through the change plan. They had a made-up mind before stepping into the meeting room. The meeting was just a PR stunt. As a Princeton University professor and world famous mathematician (who was at the meeting and also spoke) commented, it was not a dialogue at all. No wonder the PR stunt ended up a PR disaster, and got more parents angered. Just check the “Save Our WW-P Schools” petition on change.org.
The other reason I wish Mr. Aderhold and Mr. Fleres were at the Children’s Concert instead of wasting time selling their change package is that the concert was truly wonderful.
I know Mr. Aderhold said he loves children and he also loves music.
It was a beautiful concert! Beautiful music on stage, and joyful kids and parents in the audience. The theater was filled with love.
The kids in the audience will certainly be inspired by the great music produced by their big bothers and sisters on the stage. The positive spirits of those young musicians were really contagious.
When Jean Mauro, our beloved concert music director, held a new born baby dancing to the music, and a little boy stood on the podium conducting in her place, and the whole audience and orchestra was engaged in the wonderful music and love story, my eyes were wet.
You have to admire the hard work of our music teachers and our students! Beauty is not born. Beauty comes from sweat. I just want to say to Mr. Aderhold, please keep the great music tradition of our district, keep our music teachers. Let’s all appreciate our hardworking teachers and students.
I understood at the time of concert Mr. Aderhold was lecturing the parents about math and stress. I just wondered if Mr. Aderhold had watched a movie called “A Beautiful Mind”? Math is beautiful too, as beautiful as music. What our recent graduate Brice Huang has achieved is as inspiring to his younger bothers and sisters as those great musicians do. (See his letter in the News. December 4.)
Please save A&E, the beauty of WW-P math programs!
Please save our great schools and this loving community.
Mike Jia
