Dear Editor,

What a great injustice that has been served upon the creative and gifted children and teachers of this county by the Appling County Board of Education! The abolishment of all art and ROTC programs in a public school system that already has such a great investment in well-equipped classrooms, teachers, supplies and equipment (specifically designed for the instruction of art and ROTC), is an incomprehensible waste! In this county which is so blessed to be included among the wealthiest counties in Georgia, it is difficult to fathom such a misguided effort! Out of 154 counties, Appling County is ranked among the top 5 counties (top 3%) in the state according to this state’s Fiscal Capacity Index. How many of the lower 156 counties in this state do not provide either art or ROTC instruction in their schools?

The incredibly negative impact that this unforgivable decision will make to the children of this county is an abomination in the eyes of education as it affects creativity at all levels and in all fields of instruction. Whether it is engineering, architecture, automotive or aeronautical design, roads, bridges, and right on down to the layout of this newspaper, every aspect of our lives begins with creativity and design! By not allowing the children of this county this great opportunity to nurture their inherent skills will severely handicap them as they enter the real world where the arts and discipline are appreciated and respected; a world where it is known and understood that military strength is freedom.

The parents and citizens of this county need to stand up and tell this misled ACBOE what they want and expect in and from this system’s schools. The taxpayers own this county’s government, not a handful of politicians or a few influential businesses! Not one member of this ACBOE has a child in this school system!!!

Silence and apathy will be the end of this county’s prosperity!

It has become very obvious to me and the small handful of dedicated souls who hope to restore art and ROTC to the curriculum of this county’s schools, that the majority of the citizens of this county do not even realize that upon entering school on the first day of classes of the 2009-10 school year, that there will be no art in any school and that there will be no ROTC!!! ART AND ROTC ARE GONE AT THIS POINT IN TIME. Though several thousand signatures were received in support of these programs, this board has received these petitions as pure trash. Not one concession has been offered in respect of this community’s concerns. Not one member of this board has been swayed at all by the fact that these petitions were kept and promoted by over 70 businesses, groups and churches within this community. You have all been ignored. Your signatures, your comments, your support and your ink have all been a waste of time thus far.

During the most recent regularly scheduled ACBOE meeting on June 8, it was firmly stated that if ROTC is taken out of this school system, since this self-serving BOE will break its contract by not notifying program officials 12 months in advance, ROTC will not be returned to this school system anywhere in the near future. Five years was mentioned as the earliest reinstatement of ROTC and ACBOE seems to accept this consequence without concern. It was furthermore stated that all equipment and supplies provided by the ROTC program would be removed from this school system and either sold or discarded.

Though the decisions that were made to remove these programs were made totally in private by a very very small and select few public servants of this county, their antiquated thinking has set the stage for a mind-boggling performance of disaster in this community.

How many times must it be stated that study after study has proven that the presence of art in a school system has a direct impact on increased test scores within any given system. Art is essential! How more simply can this be stated!? President Obama (in his Inaugural Address) and the First Lady have both just recently made public comments in support of the Arts being an integral part in every school’s curriculum.

Just look back to where our history of this great planet originated, whether it be paintings on cave walls, hieroglyphics from Egypt, the incredible art and architecture of Rome or beautifully written scrolls from which our entire Bible originated, art was and is an essential element of all societies, both large and small.

Additionally, the defense of this nation should not be compromised. Whether it be the military arts, including the art of warfare or the art of peace-keeping, the military defense of a nation is the key to its longevity and survival. Without up-to-date training, in weapons and instruction the strength of a nation’s future protectors lies in jeopardy. This is a historically proven fact! If we turn our backs, including education and our finances to our future soldiers ....... God help those of us who intend to survive the multitude of well-prepared awaiting conquerors. This nation’s strength is in its military, not its money, not its location, not its resources, not its global presence and certainly not in its unpreparedness.

So, what should we expect as one of Georgia’s wealthiest, nearly crime and drug free counties? Well, how about an increase in crime, drug use, teen pregnancy and rebellion amongst Appling County’s young adults. If maturing teens cannot be supplied with adequate options for their futures which are compatible with their individual personalities and needs, the seeds of rebellion and disobedience will begin to sprout. Pray for a new factory for your unprepared creations to seek local employ as the real global world hits them head on with hundreds of thousands of much more qualified creative and independent thinkers.

This may strike a severe blow to our Appling County BOE members, but among the top 10 academically achieving high schools in Georgia, two of these schools, including The Savannah Arts Academy, are high schools totally dedicated to the arts!

During the past 6 weeks, myself and a handful of others have worked diligently to educate the public as to the current state of education in our schools here in Appling County. As hard as we have worked; writing, speaking, placing and collecting petitions, attending BOE meetings, it has finally dawned on me, that we (a small handful of caring and concerned radicals in this community), apparently are the only ones that realize and know that come the first day of school that all of our creative student artists, our future military leaders and heroes, will have no support from this community whatsoever!

As you work with an issue such as this, you begin to see things that you had not expected to see, hear factual things that you would have never dreamed of and learn things that you as a common citizen in this community would have never known or suspected. We have grown up in a democracy where every adult has a voice by his own vote, yet it takes experience and perhaps some aging to realize that this is not always enough. Every citizen in this county that I personally have had the opportunity to speak with, have all with the exception of not even one, relayed their concerns in support of art and ROTC in this county. Very few have expressed concern of raising taxes to assure that every child in this school system in this very wealthy Georgia County is allowed the opportunities of art and ROTC instruction.

However, as I see it, it has come down to this; a vast majority of this community seem to have very little concern towards paying in the neighborhood of $40.00 or less per year ( a 1 mil increase in the school tax) to provide the children of this community with the apparent luxury of art and ROTC instruction. However, a very small portion of this county’s populace seem to scream a louder NO! Since it has taken only a few to choose to destroy the hopes and dreams of an entire future generation in this county....... It will take a very influential few to change their minds. If this board’s proposed legacy is to afford them the bragging rights to: “We did not increase taxes”, let them also add; we disrupted the lives of each and every parent and child in this school system. May I suggest that the leadership and members of the ACBOE that voted in favor of this incompetent decision step down in the honor and dignity of education and return to your safe, art free environments before any more harm is done!

There are citizens among us who have the power to change this situation over night, and put this board on their knees. As hard as the supporters of art and ROTC have worked to attain a successful outcome, it simply cannot be done without you, the influential of this very blessed community. Step on some toes, hurt some feelings, but I beg you please come forward and help assure that Appling County continues to grow in a positive way.

Jack C. Daniel

“Silence No More”