This is my passionate plea to all of the voting public to heed the call to get out and vote “yes” for the Columbus Municipal School District Bond Referendum on the ballot May 14! Our school system’s infrastructure is deteriorating and in dire need of costly repairs. I am one of many beneficiaries of Columbus public schools, and I wouldn’t be the founder and CEO of The Watson Foundation along with our other subsidiaries if not for the educational impressions and lasting imprint instilled in me by my former teachers, administrators and the Columbus community. Yes my friends “it really took a village.” I am very thankful to this day of my fundamental learning experience I obtained in Columbus public schools that helped to inspire me to go far beyond the boundaries of Lowndes County. I was raised by my praying grandmother, known to everybody in town as Ma Betty, who had very little formal education, but she did everything within her power to make sure all of her grandchildren could one day compete on a level playing field by having the best education that Columbus had to offer. It would be irresponsible of us to now abandon those future leaders, teachers, businesspeople, mayors, governors and yes even a few presidents here and there. We must give them the invaluable resources to operate in a safe and secure learning environment in a changing world! I’m not saying that $36 million will fix all of the problems in our school system, but it does give our children a leg up and a better chance to fight another day. We are more than blessed as a city to have all of the institutions of higher learning not only here in Columbus, but Mississippi State is just a stone’s throw away to enhance and expand our children’s educational initiatives. First we have to give them the opportunity and learning foundation by preparing them and recruiting the best teachers available to teach them! So in closing these are just some of the reasons that we must vote “yes” for the CMSD bond referendum on May 14.
Larry Watson
Columbus
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