The work KSSN is doing locally is being recognized on a larger scale as legislators and other members of groups at the state level visit our schools to see just what a community school can do.

The following is a letter to the principal of Burton Elementary from Elizabeth Bauer, a member of the State Board of Education.

Dear Ms. Cotto-Hernandez:

Mrs. Straus and I enjoyed our visit to Burton School more than words can express. It was difficult to believe that 1000 students from pre kindergarten through 8th grade were at work in the building. As we walked through its quiet halls, we were impressed by the way space has been used to benefit not only students and staff, but the entire community. As a full-service community school, Burton Elementary is welcoming to all.

You have transformed the "million dollar building" from an architectural wonder of 1926 to a state of the art educational laboratory for the 21st Century. I was most impressed by your description of the process which involved the people of your community, your faculty, staff, and students. When we ask those who use our services what they want and need we invariably get a better result. You asked and the results are outstanding.

Everything seems to have been considered from teachers' needs to students' needs to open access for the community while maintaining safety and security for the student population. Organization development is a strong interest of mine. Burton School would be an excellent case study.

Above all, Burton is a full service school. The health clinic...accessible to the public without going through the school and the main office is fantastic. Six dental operatories, not to mention all the other clinical services and supports, were a most welcome sight. We were pleased to see the presence on site of Department of Human Services personnel so families in the neighborhood can walk to Burton (as do their children) to get the necessary social services in addition to health care and mental health care services. The hours you are open provide after school opportunities for children and youth that are so needed today. From breakfast to dinner, Burton School responds to the needs of the community that surrounds it.

I attended the State Bar of Michigan, Committee on Justice Initiatives, conference session on Incarceration or Graduation Explore Alternatives to the "School-to-Prison Pipeline." Key among the recommendations of the learned people who spoke was the need for mental health and social services to students in their schools before they are suspended or expelled and put out on the streets to follow a path to incarceration vs. the path to graduation. Your school is an excellent example of the desirable alternative.

I told a number of the people in the State Bar meeting about my visit to your school. Lauren Kazeel and Bob Higgins from the Michigan Department of Education were present. I am involved as a member of the Statewide Steering Committee and Policy Work Group of the Mental Health in Schools Community Partnership co-chaired by Carol Wolenberg, Deputy Superintendent, Michigan Department of Education, Jocelyn Vanda from DHS and Irene Kazieczko, Director, Bureau Community Mental Health Services, Michigan Department of Community Health. The Partnership is working to plan for more opportunities like the one you offer now.

It is not that we in Michigan don't know that full service community schools are the answer. Mrs. Straus and I, among others, have been singing that song for a long time. People say resources are a problem. Yet it costs only half as much to provide preventive services in schools such as Burton as it does to incarcerate youth and adults later. I believe it is more a question of will than of resources. If we value every student, if we will see the possibilities in every person, we will design our environments ...just as you have done...to move them from the edge of competence forward.

Thank you for being a great and enthusiastic building leader. Thank you for sharing your vision with us. Thank you for making Burton School a great place to learn. I am eager to return and I will bring with me others who may catch the "fever" or should I say, develop the fervor for community schools.

Sincerely,

Elizabeth W. Bauer, Member
Michigan State Board of Education