General+Opinions

=Opinion #1= submitted by: [|claudial]

My first thought is that, it is for me, not a new building that makes a great school, it is having students being taught something that really gets them excited to be there and passionate about learning. The building can't be a deterrant such as rain dripping on a student's head but it is what the students are doing and being that keeps them"engaged" which will make the difference. I believe that falls under great teachers and great curriculum and the keeping alive the thought that every student has the potential of greatness. That for me is the definiton of a great school. Thanks for letting me share that. This is for me the context of great school the rest of the details are content. Great to share and manuever content but having an underpinning of "this is a great school" and is that foundation that really will carry the day.

Thanks all for having this conversation, this is how it all begins, with ideas and communication. As an aside, I was having a conversation with a girlfriend in Hampden that has been an educator in the Hampden school system and her sophmore son was expressing that he knew that Hampden wasn't a great school but his friends were there. I then asked her if she didn't think Hampden was a great school, which school did she think was great and she said Orono. I almost fell down. So there you are, many many people already think we have the greatest school in the area and I just love that we think it is great and we would like to do more to get it even better. Not like something is wrong but what can we add into an Orono High school education that can really take it to another level.

I had a friend whose sister was an Olympic athlete and when she trained whenever she got to a peak she would say if that was a 10 before, now that is a 4 and she would then train to another 10 and so on. For me, greatness is found in the pursuit of greatness. No facts here just an opinion and thanks for having this conversation....this is still why I live in this town and can't imagine living anywhere else.

=Opinion #2= submitted by: [|rcurtis1]

I have a hard time believing that the majority of Orono residents side with the three School Board members in regard to tabling discussions talks about a regional high school with Old Town! Both towns have dilapitating high school buildings and yet you seem to think that waiting will help matters. It takes long enough for the process to happen in terms of getting on the "state list" of new construction high schools. I've heard that many are concerned with the large school atmosphere that a regional high school will offer. Please keep in mind, Bangor High School, and it's "large school atmosphere" is noted as a top high school in the country! I cannot believe that this OT/O regional high school will even be as large as Bangor! It's time the children of these areas are top priority. We have the opportunity to pool resources from two towns not to mention the University of Maine and yet, you want to wait? Think about the state-of -the art high school that could be offered: educationally, culturally, and athletically! I ask that you truly think about this and what it could mean for the children in this area! What, exactly, is this union between Glenburn and Veazie, and why does it have such a strong hold on your decision making? Are you really thinking the majority of those students are going to choose OHS in the future and therefore you won't need Old Town and Union 90?