My Hat’s in the Ring

By Sharon M. Kennedy

 With the national political scene changing at lightning speed, anything I write will be outdated the minute I hit “send.” So what did I decide to do to be more relevant? Why, what any 77-year-old single woman with one cat should do. I threw my hat in the ring. Then I asked friends and neighbors to sign a petition. I filed it at the County Clerk’s office, and now I’m an official candidate for a seat on the Brimley Area Schools Board of Education.

I knew Superior Township was relevant because that’s where I live. What surprised me were three others – Bay Mills, Dafter and Chippewa. I’d never heard of the last one, but I’m ready and eager to serve my immediate community and those nearby whose children attend the school I attended and graduated from in 1965. My Brimley roots go deep. I was only five-years-old when I boarded the school bus for the first time. That was 1952, and I was on my way to kindergarten. Mrs. Florence was our teacher. She was strict and ruled with an iron yardstick, something unacceptable today.

Upon my high school graduation, I was awarded the Burl Snorf Memorial Scholarship of $300. At the time what now is called Lake Superior State University (LSSU) was a branch of Michigan Tech University in Houghton. We had terms instead of semesters. The fee for each term was $90. A modest scholarship would be laughable now but sufficiently covered tuition and books 50 years ago.

When I returned to the area in the 1990s, I was a substitute teacher. I was also unaware how much had changed during the interim years. I was often called into the principal’s office to be chastised for one reason or another. Eventually, I gave up subbing. I was simply too old to effectively connect with the students unless they were in the elementary grades. My daughter graduated from Brimley in 2001, the same year I earned my master’s degree in English. That fall, I was an English instructor at LSSU. When I left academia, I began writing a general interest column for The Evening News called “Common Sense at 60.” I still write Opinion pieces for Gannett Media.

I have resided on Forrest Side Road for over 45 non-consecutive years. My roots in this community go deep, although my interest in school board activities waned when my daughter graduated. It might seem odd that at my age I decided to enter a non-partisan race, but I believe I have a lot to offer. This is not to say the present members offer less. I’m merely saying that my years of experience as a student, substitute teacher, college instructor and community columnist give me a broad lens from which to view education.

My focus is on the youngsters and teenagers who attend Brimley Area Schools. I’ve heard there are excellent academic programs as well as top-notch sports activities, and I want this to continue and improve. I think it’s time to take an active interest and ensure the main concern of newly-hired academic and staff members is, and always will be, the students.

These young people are future leaders. Some will enter politics at the national, state or local level. Some will return to Brimley and teach in the classrooms familiar to them. Others will be tradesmen. We’ll call them when we have car trouble or electrical and plumbing problems. Those who chose to be entrepreneurs will run their own businesses. As Board members, it’s up to us to hire the best so our students can be the best when they leave Brimley Area Schools.