In last week’s issue of the Phoenix, there was a letter to the editor (“Let the numbers proves why ‘school choice’ is so important,” by Gina Macdonald) purportedly meant to praise charter schools, but after reading it, the letter was simply a thinly veiled attack meant to criticize and disparage unionized public school teachers and demonize the Democratic Party.

The letter writer obviously didn’t realize that numerous individuals, including myself, have been the beneficiaries of a quality public school education, taught to us by dedicated and caring unionized teachers. As a matter of fact, I personally attribute the vast majority of successes in my personal and professional life to the teachers who guided, nurtured, and  inspired me during my time as a public school student. I’m positive I would not have enjoyed the many successes in my life without their support and dedication to their profession.

In addition, the letter writer conveniently failed to mention that the less than stellar educational outcomes for some students are a direct result of a lack of parental involvement and apathy on the part of many parents, and also did not mention that due to this lack of quality parenting, teachers of today, in addition to their educational responsibilities, are forced to also be surrogate parents, social workers, and child psychologists — all roles they take on without hesitation.

While the letter writer feels that charter schools are a magic cure to all of society’s ills, and unionized teachers and the Democratic Party are the devil reincarnated, the fact is being a teacher is one of the most important and difficult jobs in society, and it’s time to defend and support our public school system and our unionized teachers — not tear them down.

Mike Proto
Bristol