To the editor:

Thank you to Bert Juedemann for his letter in the Sept. 28 edition regarding the enjoyable Mehlville School District’s Summer Community Band Concert.

Public schools consistently offer opportunities for community members to visit the buildings, interact with teachers/administrators and learn about course offerings and programming.

Both the Lindbergh and Mehlville School Districts have “Community Tabs” on their respective websites, allowing the public to register for events, volunteer and to be informed of meetings.

Public education is a community endeavor that requires the sincere involvement of its residents to ensure its viability. Both the Lindbergh and Mehlville districts welcome community involvement and participation in everything from school board meetings to basketball games to steering/strategic planning. These districts belong to all the citizens that reside within their boundaries, so each person has both the right and the responsibility to ask questions and demonstrate support.

There has been renewed scrutiny of public education since the start of the pandemic and it is obvious that public education faces significant challenges. Nationwide approximately 91% of children are educated in public schools, so effective public education is essential to the success of our community, state and country.

I hope that South County citizens will continue to advocate for public education (i.e. Lindbergh’s construction of a new high school and Mehlville’s passage of Proposition E) and be constructively critical, asking questions about how tax dollars are spent and how curriculam and programming are being improved. I also hope you will take time to attend a game, a concert or a meeting to become more familiar with your investment.

Dave Baker

Oakville