February 3, 1998

To the Residents of the Oyster River Cooperative School District:

It does not seem possible that seven months have passed so quickly. I want to thank all of the individuals who have offered a warm welcome and for the support they have shown me since I began work this past July. It has been a very busy time for both the administrative staff and the school board. We have put in hundreds of hours of work on the high school building project and the district's operating budget. The new budget timelines resulting from SB 109 severely compressed the budget development process. However, I believe we have developed a building proposal and a budget that will allow the district to continue to provide our students with the excellent education they deserve.

This is an exciting time to be involved in education in New Hampshire. The State Supreme Court's recent decision in the Claremont Suit has resulted in a great deal of discussion concerning the components of an "adequate education." This is an important discussion, but it is my intention that we do not focus on adequate, we strive for excellence -- as one colleague put it, "GM does not sell cars by telling people they are adequate." We live in challenging times. If our students are to become successful adults, we must all work together to ensure that they have an excellent education. We are fortunate to have an excellent school system on which to build, but we must always strive to improve.

In closing, I want to thank Special Education Director Sylvia Blakslee for her many years of outstanding service to the district. Sylvia retired in December. Her wise counsel and positive demeanor is missed by all of us. I also want to thank Assistant Superintendent Al Elwell and Business Administrator Mike Everngam for all of their work and support. Without this type of team effort we would not be able to effectively run a system of this size, given the complexity of issues the school district faces.

Sincerely,
Thomas Carroll, Ph.D.
Superintendent