By CATHY GATLEY
Cupertino Courier Opinion
12/7/2005

This opinion piece is in response to a Nov. 19 Wall Street Journal
article "The New White Flight"

I made the mistake of thinking that a prestigious paper such as the Wall
Street Journal would be fair and accurate in its reporting. How
surprised and hurt I was to read its article titled "White Flight" on
Nov 19 and saw my thoughts misrepresented in such a way as to try and
divide the wonderful diverse community I live in.

As co-president of the PTA, I am often asked my opinion, but never have
my words been more manipulated and edited to offend my neighbors. When
asked about the school that my children attend, I responded that it is a
very academic school. Students have to make sacrifices with their time
that I don't think they should have to make.

The point I was trying to make is that strong academics are important,
but the things one learns outside a classroom can be just as valuable as
the things one learns in a classroom. I don't want my children to only
concentrate on AP classes and on getting A's. I want my children to
learn good sportsmanship by being on a school sports team. I want them
to smile with joy as they sing in a choir performance. I want them to
build confidence as they recite their lines in the school play, and I
want them to go to the beach with their friends on a Saturday and not
bring their books with them to study.

In the highly driven academic environment of Monta Vista High School,
some students sacrifice the extra things such as the building of a sand
castle or being on a sports team in order to take one more AP class or
to go to SAT tutoring.

I think twice about having my children live in an environment that makes
them make those choices. So when asked, "would you have moved to
Cupertino then knowing what you know now?" my answer was, "I don't
know." It had nothing to do with the change in demographics as the
writer might lead you to believe, but for the desire for a school filled
with pep-rallies, school spirit, pasta nights and fun.

Strong academics and competition are important to me, but so are the
extra things teenagers should experience that I feel are getting lost
and forgotten for the sake of an AP class. When I see my friends
choosing other schools for their children, it's because they are seeking
a more balanced school environment, not because they don't believe in
competition or diversity.

Instead of fleeing to that kind of school, I am committed to the Monta
Vista community and support the school's focus on educating the whole child.

Cupertino schools afford our children an excellent education, in part
because of the tremendous programs and in part because of the wonderful
parental involvement.

Monta Vista has great academics, but it also has a great arts and music
program, great community service programs and athletic programs.

Monta Vista's staff has been working hard over the past year to
transform itself into a more rounded school environment. I attended
freshman night recently and was proud to hear one of our administrators
counsel incoming freshman parents about their role. He said if we
allowed our children to focus only on academics and miss out on an
extra-curricular activity, be it band or sports or drama or service,
then we as parents were not holding up our part of the bargain.

It's time for papers like the Wall Street Journal to stop trying to
divide this great nation of ours by printing articles that pit neighbor
against neighbor. We all come from different backgrounds and experiences
and no one is better than the other--just different.

I personally embrace the differences my community has to offer and plan
on living in Cupertino a very long time.

Cathy Gatley is the co-president of Monta Vista High School's PTA