Facts before emotions

I have been a resident of Crystal Lake and Lake in the Hills for just over 16 years. I have two children who go to school within District 47 and have been pleased with the education they have received.

I understand these past 12 months have been trying for everyone and want to commend our community for trying to keep it together. This pandemic has forced us to think of new and innovative ways to effectively communicate and attempt to continue with our normal lives. For better or worse, we have adapted and overcome.

When the pandemic started to affect our daily lives locally, our school district like many others made a difficult decision to keep our children, teachers and staff home to assure their safety. This was a decision that was completely understandable as information on the COVID-19 virus was limited.

The district scrambled and put together a remote-learning program for the remainder of the year. The district board was forced to make several decisions that would affect the lives of many families and children, but I truly believe they did it in good faith.

Over the summer, things began to open up and hopes for returning to school began to feel real. My wife and I tuned into board meetings to listen to what the district's plans were. We, like many other families, appreciated the idea of allowing each family to decide if they wanted their child to return to in person learning or stay remote.

Emily Smith was one of the board members who was in support of this. We appreciated Emily's insight into getting the children back into the schools in a safe manner. When Emily spoke, she did so with facts and science vs emotion.

Emily listened to the parents and advocated for a solution that provided options for families to choose what was best for their children. Emily recognized the areas of opportunity that existed in the 2019-20 school year. She worked with the community to come up with solutions to evolve the remote-learning model as well as getting kids back to in person learning during the 2020-21 school year.

Board members are elected to represent our community. That representation should be done objectively, not subjectively. Emily Smith has proven to be a reliable and positive voice during a difficult time. Our family fully endorses Emily Smith in this upcoming election for School District 47.

Robb Tadelman

Lake in the Hills