To the editor:

Even parents who are happy with the decision to move sixth grade should be concerned with the process the district followed. The district asked only “should we move sixth-graders” and the pros and cons of this move posted on the district website was, to put it kindly, superficial.

The more appropriate question would have been “what is the best middle school configuration; 6-8 or 7-8, and how would these configurations impact not just sixth-graders but also seventh- and eighth-graders?” Some districts in Kansas have a 7-8 configuration and we had the opportunity to learn from them what works well and what does not. The test performance information from across the state with different configurations could have been made available. But none of this information, if it was gathered at all, was made available to parents and taxpayers.

If, after a public and thorough consideration of all of the available data, it appeared that it was best to move sixth-graders, I believe that the vast majority of parents would have supported the decision. Instead, it appears that a decision had been made, lip service to community input was given, and the decision was implemented. This is hardly the kind of trust the district wants to build the next time a school bond is floated.