Letter: Emphasize quality of education

Both Bluffton and Hilton Head Island town councils are considering future vision and job growth to broaden the attractiveness of families moving to the Lowcountry beyond our reliance on tourism and retirees.

During my quarter century here as a retiree, I’ve observed significant changes in our society.

Most young families prioritize quality education very high in their residency decisions. Enhanced job communication capabilities on the Internet also make towns with lower living costs versus large metropolitan areas more attractive.

In these towns, public high schools are among the best in South Carolina and getting better. We also have a number of quality private schools. Quality teachers, particularly at the secondary level and for STEM subjects, are a valuable resource that we currently don’t pay enough. We must work together to prove that teachers can reasonably prosper here.

College education costs too much and student loans aren’t the best answer.

USCB and TCL offer an alternative for students to finish their first and second year at home in addition to their degree programs. Our high schools are beginning to offer this option for the first year as well (kudos to Superintendent Jeff Moss and the school board for their “school choice program”).

Without a “strong mayor” form of government, our towns don’t actively work with the school board and County Council to help fix problems like teacher salaries or even publicize the quality education that we have. Let’s agree to fix this.

This story was originally published February 11, 2016 at 10:07 PM with the headline "Letter: Emphasize quality of education."