Is the School District really that bad? I suppose that depends on who you ask. It’s an opinion, for sure. We’ve heard quite a bit of opinions on how bad the schools are; but what is believable, and what is fabricated, embellished, or otherwise to make an attempt at advancing one's own political agenda?

At the end of my daughter's eighth grade, she was looking for a fresh start. She spent a number of years outside of the FHUSD. We toured a number of area schools, including Fountain Hills High School. Once the announcement was made of Dr. Jagodzinski’s return, we knew we found our school.

In a little over a year, Dr. Jagodzinski has turned our School District around. It was a monumental effort, one that I thought would take years to achieve. Is there still work to be done? There certainly is; a significant amount. However, after a little over a year on the job, Jagodzinski has improved morale among students and staff, completed a consolidation, established a preschool, modified instructional schedules at the high school and grown overall enrollment.

So why are some in our community out to destroy this progress? Where were they when a previous superintendent was sitting idle as the exodus of staff and students occurred? What is the benefit of a stagnant School District? Who wins? How do we attract families to Fountain Hills with a lackluster school system? How do we keep our community moving forward?

My opinion is that we surround our schools, staff and students with support and demonstrate what we can create.

We are adults. We set an example. Our kids are watching our behavior. It’s time to start providing what is deserved. We’re tearing our community down or we’re building it up. There simply is no in between.