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Parents, senior citizens, business people, we can all have a better understanding of
the problems and collaboratively come together so that we can try to solve them and do a
better job by the young people of our community. It's been very enlightening to me to see some
of the things that we have going on in Crossett that I was unaware of, not having any children
in school now. There may be things that people have expressed in the study circles that the
school may be unaware of or haven't thought of or maybe have not realized that there is
a need there, and I think in that way the community is involved and we're putting more
input into the school system. I think there's a lot of value in this approach to affecting
legislation. It seems to me that a legislator at any level, that the decisions of that legislator
is only going to be as good as the amount of information that they have available. Well,
I think that I've been a little bit more thoughtful as to how I approach legislation, because
in the past I've always more or less considered how is it going to affect me as a school teacher.
Now I have to think more about how is it going to affect not only myself, but the community
at large. How is it going to affect students? So, I'm coming at it from a more well-rounded
approach than I was before. That I think has been one of the best things to come out of
study circles is the relationships between people who are sometimes perceived as adversaries
and now they're not. They're on the same side; they're allies, and that's a neat outcome.
And I think after being a part of the study circles, I have been able to get a better
perspective on why there are some negative feelings about the education system. It has
just been a real joy to get out there and meet people who are very concerned about their
schools, who have a commitment to doing the right thing for the kids in their community.
You know, often people who don't have children into schools, it's just a real treat to be
around those folks into the in their company and to be a part of what they're doing. I
learned that working with other people can really make a difference and help make the
issues better in our schools. Study circles is one way community members, educators, and
policymakers can work together for education. You have just heard the story of some of the
people who answered the roll call in Arkansas and Oklahoma. Their investment to help keep
students in school, prepare them for the future, and keep them safe and well cared for is an
investment that will benefit their families and community for a long time to come. When
you get people to get together, talk with each other, and have a sense that their opinion
counts, at least in that study circle, I think that that connection can make a big difference
in how people actually feel about community, first, government second, maybe voting, and
really, you know, citizenship itself. I've been in community-active kinds of work all
my life. I have never experienced a process that I thought it was as valuable and as inclusive
as the Study Circles Project. Almost the perfect means to get citizen participation, and I
don't think there's anything else that comes close to it. Two hours out of your evening
is nothing, when you look at the big picture.