Education

Published August 23, 2021

Do we believe in the common good?

The debate over children wearing masks in schools continues to fester here and across the country. There are citizens protesting governors who are mandating masks to help ensure in-class learning continues and there are governors threatening to penalize schools districts that choose to require them. Frankly, some of the antics are disturbing, especially with vaccination rates lagging and COVID-19 cases surging once again. Silas House, a writer based in Kentucky, wrote a poignant essay for The Atlantic about the issue, observing that some Americans – a minority, thankfully, despite their noise – think only of themselves and no longer believe…

Published July 22, 2021

Unmasking the school debate

A banner hangs on the side of a semi trailer parked on the northeast corner of 30th and Broadway in Quincy, imploring school boards to “Unmask Our Children.” Yard signs conveying the same message can be found scattered around town and elsewhere in Adams County. I have read stories and listened to podcasts on the subject in local media in recent weeks. I have watched as public turnout for local school board meetings has increased to levels generally reserved for firing a coach or fighting a tax hike, with decorum often optional. It begs a couple of questions: Why has…

Published May 13, 2021

Medicare for … me?

It’s official. I’m old. There have been some telltale signs in recent years: The gray hair, the bald spot, regularly scheduled naps, a daughter who turned 40, a granddaughter who turned 17, a fully stocked medicine cabinet, and the fact the golf ball no longer travels as far as it once did. Oh, and my wife may have pointed it out a couple of times in recent years when I kneeled down to pick up something and had trouble standing back up. “We’re getting older, Donnie,” she would matter-of-factly say. Of course, as my wife can legally document, I don’t…

Published April 25, 2021

Back in the classroom after all these years

One of the biggest questions about retirement is what to do with all of your time. Admittedly, it’s a nice problem to have. My wife retired a few months before I did. She has several hobbies to occupy her free time, whenever she gets it. She also started a business that allows her to work as much – or as little – as she wants, and she still oversees the household finances and fixes things that are broken. Me? I play golf. In the Midwest that primarily means April through October, weather permitting, with anything else a bonus. Aside from…

Category: Education

Do we believe in the common good?

Unmasking the school debate

Medicare for … me?

Back in the classroom after all these years