Goessel leaders are trying to change the town's destiny by talking and working together. It's a place to start.
Goessel leaders are showing that small, rural communities don't have to accept declining school enrollment without a fight. The joint meeting of the town's city council and school board last week seems to be a good step toward taking charge of one's destiny. These leaders realize a community is intimately connected with its schools, and that a threat to the health of its schools threatens the health of the entire town.
Talking together about the issues is a good place to start-and perhaps Goessel's meeting could be a model for other schools and communities with enrollment challenges. Let's see, that would be...every school district in the county.
But the challenge facing Goessel-and all of us-is that most communities envision similar solutions: bring in industry and jobs, offer free lots, and fanatically promote your strengths.
Logic suggests very few small towns in Kansas can win the population jackpot by playing the same hand. Perhaps in our conversations, we can find the creative inspiration we all need. -DR
