The disappointment I feel at Tuesday’s millage election loss is tempered by the fact that we did, indeed, achieve one of our important goals. As someone who has spent the last few years working to educate our community about school funding issues and get everyone involved in the choices being made, I hoped that the debate over the Washtenaw Schools Millage would at the very least open up a much needed and long overdue conversation about our public schools. Our community needs to think clearly about what we want from our schools, how they should achieve it, and what resources they will need to be successful. These conversations should be happening across the state, as we face the question of how to provide our children with a quality education in these difficult times.

Roughly twenty percent of the eligible voters in our region chose to vote on the millage, and – even though the proposal won in the AAPS district – a majority of them decided to say “no.” While I deeply hope we will not regret this decision, the realities of our current situation give me little reason for optimism. I certainly understand the sources of much opposition to the millage, ranging from personal financial hardship to principled opposition to further taxes. But something else emerged from this debate, something which I feel cannot be left to fade into obscurity as we put the election behind us.

Among all the arguments about “waste,” teacher pay, donor districts, and so forth, one underlying argument emerged that did more to sadden me than anything else I read. This argument, especially popular among those organizing the “No” campaign, runs thus: The only people who could possibly support this millage are those who would directly benefit from it or have been somehow “duped.” Anyone campaigning for the millage must, therefore, have a hidden agenda, some way in which they were profiting – or stood to profit – from the millage. No one, the argument goes, could possibly be in favor of the proposal for selfless reasons.

Nothing could be further from the truth. Absolutely no one – not one person – in the Ann Arbor Citizens Millage Committee or our counterparts in the other districts were making one dime on this campaign. And most of us, parents and citizens, had no other connection with our local school district than our concern for the quality of education for our children and our communities. We were private citizens volunteering our time for a cause in which we believe strongly.

An especially venomous, anonymous, set of bloggers took some pains to speculate as to the source of our funding and our motives. Giving us a back-handed compliment, they insisted that such a professional, “slick,” grassroots campaign could not be had for free.

But it was. There were expenses, of course: printing, postage, advertising, and so on. But the people who brought their energy, dedication and skills to our campaign did so because they value quality public education for our community. And these people deserve to be recognized and honored.

Every written and printed piece that was produced by our campaign was shepherded, and usually crafted, by Laurie Barnett – an AAPS parent and a skilled professional accustomed to working with non-profit organizations who set aside several months of her time to help the campaign. Our logo, signs and printed materials carry the visual stylings of Stephanie Tetzlaff, who volunteered her time to help us look our best.

Our energetic grassroots organization, from appearances at PTO meetings to neighborhood canvassing, was organized by Amy Schlecht Pachera, another AAPS parent and alumna of the corporate world who took on the largest and most challenging job in the campaign. If you saw volunteers canvassing in your neighborhood, or had a speaker come to talk about the millage to your group, that was Amy’s work. The CMC’s media strategy was implemented by Donna Lasinski, also an AAPS parent and a local entrepreneur, who brought skill, drive and determination to getting our message across.

If you saw one of the events scheduled by our team, you would hear our case put forward by some of the most knowledgeable and dedicated public servants I have ever worked with: our campaign co-chairs, Karen Cross and Norman Herbert. Karen, of course, recently stepped down after six years as President of the AAPS Board of Education; Norman has committed himself to countless community and charitable projects since retiring as Associate Vice President and Treasurer of the University of Michigan. Karen and Norman worked tirelessly to bring our message to the community. And if you heard one of our few radio advertisements, you heard the sweet sounds of Karen’s voice, made possible by the work of Donna and Laurie.

Glenn Nelson, member of the AAPS Board of Education, economist, and former AAPS parent, took a special pleasure in working with young people at our local universities to get students aware and active in the campaign. Robin Wax, a former AAPS teacher (and still an educator), bridged worlds by reaching out to both former students and seniors in our community. Christine Stead, another AAPS parent and a business consultant, kept our information on track and worked with Glenn to develop the factual substance that underlay our arguments. Christine was also responsible for the fabulous informational presentations that the opposing campaign insisted simply could not be the work of volunteers. But they were.

While none of us took any money for our work, money is still the lifeblood of any campaign. Helen Starman, AAPS parent and tireless advocate for our schools, took the lead in making sure that we had the resources we needed to get our message out. Bill Wade, a retired businessman and former CFO of the school district, kept us on the straight and narrow as treasurer of the CMC.

It may be unusual to thank volunteers in such a public way, but these people – who represent the many, many more who volunteered to make phone calls, knock on doors, hand out literature, hold house meetings, contribute to the cause, and spread the word with friends and neighbors – deserve to be recognized for acting on their belief that a quality public education should be available to every child. Their sacrifices, and those of their families, should not be casually written off as economic self-interest. Instead, these wonderful people should be honored for their commitment to their community.

This millage proposal may be no more, but the difficult choices remain ahead of us. I hope that the generosity and public spirit of these volunteers will stand as a model for our entire community.

Steven Norton
AAPS parent, small business owner, and
volunteer Campaign Manager
Ann Arbor Citizens Millage Committee