A Community Update Before the Election

As we enter another election season, I believe our community needs to take a serious and honest look at where Pleasant View School stands today. We returned to school at the beginning of August, and today is September 4, yet major issues remain unresolved, including student schedules that still have not been properly finalized. At the same time, current Board members are asking the community to consider electing them again. After the past nine months, we have to ask ourselves: What has this Board actually accomplished that has earned our confidence and our vote for another term?

Where is the meaningful transparency? Where is the consistent communication with parents, teachers, and the community? Where is the evidence that our concerns were heard and addressed? Where are the actions that have brought this community together and restored the trust that has been lost?

The same concerns apply to the current administration. Hamzah Goodson and Denetria Shirley have not demonstrated the meaningful improvement in communication, leadership, or school operations that our community has been waiting for. Instead, we continue to see small or routine accomplishments amplified and presented as significant progress, while much larger and more important problems remain unresolved. We should not confuse activity with progress, and we should not allow carefully highlighted small achievements to distract from the issues that families and staff are still experiencing every day.

A Board position is not a title to be held indefinitely. It is a responsibility to the community. Anyone asking for another term should be prepared to show what they accomplished, what they improved, how they communicated, and how they contributed to the stability and unity of our school. Our votes should be based on results, not appearances, promises, or carefully packaged accomplishments.

The reality is that Pleasant View School feels deeply different from the school many of us knew and trusted. The division and loss of confidence within our community are serious, and repairing that damage will require much more than meetings, announcements, or highlighting minor successes. It will require honest leadership, accountability, transparency, meaningful communication, and a genuine commitment to bringing people back together.

If we do not wake up now, when will we?

This is not about attacking individuals. It is about asking whether our current leadership has earned the right to continue leading. We cannot keep accepting the same outcomes and expect a different future. There is still something worth saving, but we have to be willing to recognize what is happening, ask difficult questions, and make informed decisions before we vote.

Before anyone asks for another term, the community deserves a clear answer: What have you done in the last nine months that earned our vote again?

Pleasant View deserves leadership that produces meaningful results—not leadership that simply makes small results look meaningful.