Our kids have to work doubly hard to compete with schools that require their students to take debate as a class.

With small schools and declining enrollment, two or three kids can dramatically affect test scores. We tested 75 fewer students district wide than last year.

We go into some of the schools and work with some of the kids, these the kids who are troubled, whether it's having outbursts in class or they are a part of some gang related activity. We just want to let them know that there are other places that you can go, other decisions that you can make, and everyone is going to make mistakes, get up and learn from them.

It's always nice to be acknowledged for the work that we do.

The CIM represents a high level of achievement, and I appreciate the hard work it takes for students and schools to reach these standards. However, CIM distribution is very uneven across the state. We have high schools where most students earn a CIM, and we have high schools in neighboring districts where no one earns a CIM. As it stands now, the CIM is not meaningful for all students.

The debate is simple. We have one topic and students pick sides, if they are for or against it. Each person has only a few minutes to make a point or to argue another point. Debates can be very fast and very emotional.