The end of the school year is upon us, and as we empty out backpacks, throw away used notebooks and sort through the art projects, we also need to take stock of what the year brought to both our students and our community.

There have been both celebrations and disappointments, as is always true in life. Along with the end-of-year parties, field days and possibly graduations, there have been good-byes – to a favorite teacher, to a friend who may be moving, or perhaps to a school building as your child heads to the next level.
It is a time to reflect, from the school board to the parents and children. We need to identify the existing evaluation and improvement processes: Are they being followed? So often we rush headlong into summer and never pause to assess and evaluate the successes and failures of the ending school year. There is a lot to process.
Lately, a lot has been written about the state of education in Cape May County. Many of us wonder what needs to be done. We are facing disparities in facilities, budgets, absenteeism, food insecurity, economics and language, all of which contribute to our students not achieving academically as well as we want. Recently, the state reading and math test scores for the 2023-2024 school year were released. As was noted in recent articles in the Herald, some of our schools are underperforming.
It’s time to take stock of what can be done to improve this situation and provide our children with the opportunity to have a sound foundation academically. This can only happen if we all work as a team – parents, teachers, students, administrators and other local collaborators.
Over the past eight months I’ve had the opportunity to visit some educational gems in Cape May County. From Coastal Preparatory School to The Rainbow Homework Club, I’ve attempted to introduce the county to some of the specific solutions that are already in place.
We at Cape Issues will do our best to keep you informed, but we also need your participation in the process. Get involved! Write a letter to the editor of the Herald. Comment on your experiences in Spout Off. Go to your school board website to become better informed about what is going on in your district.
If there are improvement policies, are they being followed? Is there an opportunity for parental and teacher input? Attend your school board meetings. Educate yourself on what is going on in your child’s classroom, school and district.
Ask questions. Start a conversation on how we can move forward to improve education in Cape May County. Happy summer!