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June 2, 2008

Letter: Chance to seize opportunity from crisis

To the editor:

As a lifelong resident of Beverly and 1985 graduate of Beverly High School, I experienced firsthand the closings of Brown, Prospect and Beverly Farms elementary schools as a fifth-grader. I was also a member of the very first freshman class at the high school.

We cannot, as a community, discount the effects such drastic changes have on students, their families and their neighborhoods — both in the short and long term.

The severe reconfiguration proposals currently on the table for the Beverly school system do not plan for future budget shortfalls, raise class sizes to unproductive levels, cut valued staff and programs, and create an irreversible and unsustainable plan for our children's education.

The addition of revenue gained from an override allows Beverly the time and resources to re-examine our elementary school configuration, while adequately assessing class sizes and equitable redistricting. A yes vote on the override can turn this budget crisis into an opportunity.

JOANNA MURPHY SCOTT

Beverly

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