Fishers parent: ‘All or nothing’ not a sensible policy approach

By SHAYRE RIVOTTO

Guest Columnist

I am a conservative parent of two children I have removed from public school. I have been doing my part in the fight to get our schools back to real excellence in education.

I am not talking about the kind of excellence that touts ideology and feelings above all else. I mean the old school excellence where academic knowledge and achievement meant something more. I mean the excellence of our school system where teachers were silent about their political views. I mean the excellence of our teachers to teach us HOW to think, and not WHAT to think. I miss the days when ALL teachers were neutral, and the children could make up their own minds.

This journey through the process of being a concerned parent and an advocate for my children has taught me a lot of life lessons. I didn’t want to get into the political process at all, yet here I am doing it out of necessity for our children and our God-given rights. Here we are in the middle of a legislative session that has been very controversial, and I reflect on my journey to get here. I want to share some of what I have learned along the way.

Two years ago, I didn’t know anything about school boards or local government. Sure, I voted in the presidential elections, but I had no idea of the impact that local and state government had on our lives. I never knew how important it was to get involved at the local level, and I realize that most people are just like me. I would encourage everyone to get involved with your own local government in some way, or at least make an effort to know what is happening. Know WHO is making decisions at the local and state level for you and your families.

Most of us just want to go about enjoying our lives, and we don’t understand the importance of knowing what is happening. We think that other people will just take care of it for us.

They will not. It takes all of us.

I have learned that many things are not as they appear. As regular citizens, we often look at legislators and politics from the viewpoint that it is all corrupt. It’s true that we have been let down by people in both parties, and it is certainly true that there is corruption.

However, I have met some of the greatest people that I never expected to meet during this process. I see legislators with a true heart to serve others. My state legislators have listened to parents like me from the very beginning, and they made sincere efforts to learn about our concerns. Once they learned our concerns were founded in factual evidence, they took action to protect us and our rights. I will be forever grateful for what they have done and for their courage to do what is right – even at great cost to themselves. They have earned my trust and respect with their actions and intentions.

How do you know a good legislator? Look to see how they vote on bills that are important to you. Do they have the courage to put forth bills at all? Do they listen to the people? Can they navigate the mess that is our government to get to the finish line with actual results that help us, or are they all media hype with nothing to back it up? If you can find those answers, then you will find your good legislators to support.

The most surprising thing that I have learned is how divided people can be. Everyone has different ideas, and everyone seems to want their own way regarding politics and legislation, especially on bills like House Bill 1134. It’s all or nothing for some, while others will take what they can get and work toward building on a foundation. All or nothing does not work for us in the end. SOMETHING is always better than nothing, in my opinion. Why can’t we come together to get something accomplished for ourselves?

I hope that we figure it out before it is too late.