“Viewpoints” is a place on Chapelboro where local people are encouraged to share their unique perspectives on issues affecting our community. All thoughts, ideas, opinions and expressions in this series are those of the author, and do not reflect the work, reporting or approval of 97.9 The Hill and Chapelboro.com. If you’d like to contribute a column on an issue you’re concerned about, interesting happenings around town, reflections on local life — or anything else — send a submission to [email protected].
Navigating Change Together
A perspective from Jess Anderson and Barbara Foushee
To the families, students, and staff of Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools,
In recent months, as our community has wrestled with difficult decisions about our schools, many parents have reached out to us seeking advice.
We know this redistricting process is hard. Changing where a child goes to school touches something deep — for kids, for parents, and for everyone who has built a life around a particular school. Coming on the heels of other challenging decisions, this year has already asked a lot of our community.
Today, we are writing together, as your Mayors, because this moment invites us to think not only about the decisions ahead, but about the kind of community we want to be as we navigate them.
We want to be clear: decisions about redistricting rest with the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools Board of Education and the Superintendent. Those decisions belong to the Board and Superintendent, and we respect their role in this process.
What we can do is share from experience. Having served on boards that make difficult choices, we know firsthand that the way people show up — with steadiness, patience, and generosity — shapes not only the atmosphere, but often the outcomes.
This matters now because the process will bring together students and families who may have found themselves on opposite sides of difficult conversations about school closures. Those experiences and feelings are real, but they don’t have to define what comes next. We have an opportunity to approach this next chapter with fresh eyes, remain open to new ideas and possibilities, and welcome people whose paths may not have crossed before. In doing so, we can show our children what it looks like to build community even when we haven’t chosen the circumstances that bring us together.
As we all know, kids take their cues from the adults around them. When parents, teachers, and neighbors stay steady and show confidence in children, kids are better able to navigate change. They are more adaptable than we sometimes give them credit for. Walking into a new building, making new friends, and finding their place can be scary, but children have a much better chance to thrive when the adults around them believe in them and treat one another with warmth and respect.
And we have every reason to believe in this community. While it has been some time since our schools last went through redistricting, we know the people who make up these school communities have the care, resilience, and commitment to help one another through it. Parents, educators, staff, and students have shown time and again that they can come together, even in challenging moments, to create a sense of belonging and make things better for our children.
So our ask is this: however this process unfolds, let’s handle it in a way we can be proud of. Let’s welcome every student and every family into whatever school community they join. Let’s remember that our commitment to all children, and to one another, is bigger than any one assignment decision. And let’s show our kids, through our example, that change can be hard and still lead to something good.
With gratitude for this community,
Mayor Jess Anderson, Town of Chapel Hill Mayor Barbara Foushee, Town of Carrboro
“Viewpoints” on Chapelboro is a recurring series of community-submitted opinion columns. All thoughts, ideas, opinions and expressions in this series are those of the author, and do not reflect the work or reporting of 97.9 The Hill and Chapelboro.com.
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