Letter: Response to school board president’s remarks

Mr. Goodrich and Board of Directors of the Moses Lake School District:

As you already know, on March 17 all public schools across the state of Washington were closed and will not reopen until April 27 at the earliest. Since then there has been a wide range of ever-changing guidance from the superintendent of public instruction on what learning should look like until the time we reopen. As a district, we’ve agreed on a remote learning plan that means our work looks much different than it does when we’re in our classrooms, but that doesn’t mean it’s any less challenging or difficult. Educators are still preparing lessons and materials, still connecting with students and their families and still working to provide the best learning opportunities possible in this challenging environment for the students in our community.

In light of Mr. Goodrich’s recent negative comments about teachers, Moses Lake Education Association (MLEA) must respond to the statements made. It is unfortunate that our school board president made some disrespectful, ill-informed comments that insulted an entire staff of educators; we should remember that Mr. Goodrich’s comments do not represent the values of our staff, our district administrators or our community. When statements are made that are so negative and purposefully derogatory as what was said, it is obvious that Mr. Goodrich doesn’t have the best interests of the school district in mind. Mr. Goodrich continually promotes his own ideals of what he feels is best for MLSD. He is not unbiased or impartial in his representation of the community or with his publicly stated opinions, which is a total disregard of the oath that all school board members take when they are sworn into office.

MLEA leadership and bargainers have been involved in continuous discussion with district administration during the past two weeks and will continue to be in close contact throughout this challenging time. Our district administration understands and respects the difficulties and challenges that everyone is experiencing in this new environment.

The teachers of the Moses Lake School District will continue to provide instruction to the best of their ability because of the care and dedication they have to their profession and their students. We do this in spite of the lack of support and understanding that Mr. Goodrich and other board members have shown.

Jay Mather

President

Moses Lake Education Association