And you thought District 150 had little to offer...

It seems the news from Peoria School District 150 gets bleaker by the week. Surrounding Districts don't want to take Manual High School students because none of them have room. Yeah, right.

I was dismayed by the area school test scores printed in the JPStar last week. Anyone else notice that Richwoods High School, serving north Peoria's more economically privileged, did not meet the state standard for math?! I'm not a huge fan of President Bush or the underfunded "No Child Left Behind" program. However, NCLB allows every state to choose which standardized test to administer, and Peoria kids aren't making progress.

In light of District 150's huge deficit, poor scores, impending school closures, obnoxious book fees, the firing and paying off of Kay Royster, and last year's school shootings, I have been harassing my sister to remove my nieces from their public school. I formerly believed that any diligent parent raising diligent children could get an education at any public school. I don't believe that anymore. I think my nieces learn in between distractions, but for the most part, their school day consists of a non stop exercise in crowd control.

Sis won't home school. "My kids deserve a break from me." I grew up with this woman and she is absolutely correct. Our family isn't Catholic and not comfortable enrolling the kids in Catholic school. We checked out Peoria Christian. Initially we were impressed with Peoria Christian's challenging curriculum and well behaved students. However, when we read the application we were informed they require a written recommendation from your pastor. We were also to answer questions such as, "Who is the spiritual thunder in your home?" A little creepy. I'm all for exposing the girls to Christianity and have them choose it as their faith, but the application left us with the feeling we would be giving continual permission for the school's administration to judge our commitment to God. Er, no thank you, kinda think it's a private matter. This left Montessori, the private Lutheran school on Glen (name escapes me), and Peoria Academy which are all pretty pricey.

So, the girls are still enrolled in public school. After less than a week both girls came home with colds and sore throats and kindly passed them on to yours truly. Say what you will about District 150, I promise they will give your child ample opportunity to develop a strong immune system.

Hey, I'm just trying to be positive! Oh, never mind. Please pass the Kleenex and could someone pour me another shot of Nyquil?