Educational advocates at our ages?

How old do we have to be to stop caring about education in our schools?

I choose to believe we’re never too old to stop caring about educational concerns in our schools. But how about you? Whatever your age, what do you think about the education our children and youth are receiving in our county? How do you speak up for education here?

I don’t mean to open the “Pandora’s box” that unleashes multiple ideas that produce division. My questions are meant to remind each of us that we always, in some ordinary ways, can impact our hopes for excellent education in our children’s, grandchildren’s, or great-grandchildren’s schools.

To that end, our March 28 Geezer Forum is pleased to have Dr. Becky Meyer, superintendent of the Lake Pend Oreille School District as our guest speaker. (Yes, March’s Geezer Forum is not on our regular second Tuesday time, but on the fourth Tuesday to accommodate Dr. Meyer's schedule.)

Part of Dr. Meyer's time with us will focus on the district’s “freshly approved five-year strategic plan." I’ve done enough strategic plans to know how institutional they can sound, no matter how many good ideas lie within the words. So feel free to come ready to ask Dr. Meyer any “how does that work?” questions you have about that plan. Good educational advocates can do that.

Additionally, Dr. Meyer will give us an update on what happened to various education-centered bills in the Idaho Legislature. School vouchers, public school money possibly being rerouted to private schools, fewer school election dates, etc., have been hot-button topics in Boise in this session.

As I write this column, the Legislature hopes to adjourn today. If so, all will be completed, and our chances to respond to certain bills will be gone.

But even if those topics are finished for 2023, it will be helpful to know what we’re dealing with as far as the short-time future, and possibly long-term future, of Idaho public school education.

So, please consider bringing your educational advocacy-type questions to our March 28 Geezer Forum, 2:30-4 p.m. at the Community Room of “the bank with a new name.” In case you were not aware, Columbia Bank was purchased in March by Umpqua (“Um-qua”) Bank. There may even be some new signage for Umpqua Bank up by the time we meet on March 28.

Our April Geezer Forum will be on our regular second Tuesday, April 11. For some time, we have scheduled a rare showing of the "Sandpoint Centennial" film, produced in 2001 and filmed by Erik Daarstad, who recently passed away. When Erik first told me of his terminal diagnosis, he basically apologized that he wouldn’t be able to be at the film’s showing in person.

And so he won’t be. But we will show the documentary in memoriam to our dear friend Erik Daarstad. It is a two-hour film, so the Geezer Forum will begin at 2 p.m., not our normal 2:30 p.m. time. I hope you will be able to join us, particularly if you’ve not seen the 21-year-old film. It’s a wonderful chronicle of life in Sandpoint and Bonner County up until 2001.

Paul Graves, M.Div., is the lead geezer-in-training for Elder Advocates, a consulting ministry on aging issues. Paul can be called at 208-610-4971 or emailed at elderadvocates@nctv.com.