To the Palisades School Board: “Support universal mask wearing”

I have resided in Tinicum Township for over 30 years. I came to Tinicum Township after serving 10 years as a teacher, educational evaluator, and senior level school administrator with the New York City public schools. Concurrent to this, I was an adjunct professor at New York University and The City University of New York.
Upon establishing my residency in Tinicum Township, I was employed as a senior level administrator with the Pennsbury School District and subsequently as a director with the Abington School District for over 20 years. I hold a doctorate from Teachers College, Columbia University and have worked with children and young adults for my entire school career. I am currently a member of the Bucks County Community College Board of Trustees and a member of the Palisades School District’s Professional Learning/Act 48 Committee.
I state this to each of you as I have firsthand experience knowing the powerful impact that educational policy makers, like yourselves, have on the lives of students that are under our care every school day.
As school directors, you are confronting current issues that require decisions which will have a lifelong impact on students in the Palisades School District. Please consider carefully those issues surrounding mask wearing, diversity and inclusion in the curriculum, and the importance of instilling in our children and young adults the ability to examine, analyze and synthesize fact-based information before making decisions. The very processes that we ourselves must consider and employ when making decisions that impact our own lives and the lives of others around us.

I urge you to support universal mask wearing in the Palisades schools until the threat of the Delta variant passes. In addition, I urge you to maintain the highest curricula standards, including course content that includes factual and current information, diversity, inclusion, and diverse cultural heritages.
Our textbooks and educational materials should be up-to-date and based on complete and current information. Our schools must be a reflection of our larger society so our students can graduate and effectively communicate, understand, and engage with others in an informed, fact-based, and civil manner.
Thank you for your consideration of the above and for taking your roles as policy makers for our children in a wise and informed fashion.
Richard Balukas, Ed.D., Tinicum Township

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