The movement builds. (Moira Reed photo)
They hit a milestone yesterday.
A petition on change.org calling for the reinstatement of Coupeville High School/Middle School Dean of Students Tom Black picked up its 500th signature Wednesday.
The clarion call, which was launched June 25 by Gabe Reed, hit the round number on day #11.
Black, a 19-year veteran of Coupeville Schools, is part of a series of budget cuts issued by Coupeville Schools Superintendent Steve King.
The actions are in response to the school board passing a “modified education plan” on a 4-1 vote requiring up to 1.45 million in cuts.
This was instituted after the district’s general fund, under the guidance of King and now-retired Business Manager Denise Peet, dropped below the figure mandated by the board — 6% of budgeted expenditures.
This is the second time in recent years this has happened.
Many of the people signing the #bringbackblack petition commented on why they believe it is important to reverse his job loss.
Some selections:
Jessica Bester:
Mr. Black is the heart and soul of that school.
He is the ONLY administrator who actually cares about students and their wellbeing.
Not keeping him is a huge mistake, and the students will ultimately be the ones who suffer.
Rebecca Dale:
Mr. Black is an incredible, amazing, caring man.
He helped me so much in high school and was one of the biggest supporters I had.
He helped me achieve to graduate – I probably wouldn’t have without him.
If a kid didn’t have lunch or couldn’t afford supplies he always helped, he even bought my senior yearbook for me.
You’re the best Mr. Black, thanks for the candy!
Ana Paula De Souza
I live in Oak Harbor and my daughter attends Coupeville Middle School.
She said Mr. Black is (was) one of the best things about Coupeville MS because he really cares about the students.
She was devastated when I told her the news about him not being at school next school year anymore.
I don’t know Mr. Black personally, but if my daughter says something like that about someone I tend to believe her.
I trust her judgment.
Joshua Wilsey:
Mr. Black is a staple in the Coupeville community.
He has changed and altered so many young lives for the better; he’s the one that you can go to when you feel nobody will listen, because he actually listens, and he actually cares.
Without him, I would not have been able to manage my ADHD.
And I would have kept getting into trouble and I wouldn’t have been able to keep grades to play the sports that were an absolute necessity for me as an escape from my day-to-day life.
Mr. Black is for the students, and I will forever be grateful for the impact he had on my life.
Lita Woollet:
Mr. Black helped me get away from a lot of the bullying I faced there, pushed me to go to court after I was touched and put on a hit list, and would listen to me talk about it.
He helped me tremendously and he’s always helped my two younger siblings.
He deserves so much more than this; thank you, Mr. Black!
The petition can be found here:
https://www.change.org/p/keep-tom-black-as-the-coupeville-dean-of-students?source_location=search
Coupeville Sports 