Metro is alive and well

By Dan Adams

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Rumors of Metro's demise have been greatly exaggerated.

This paraphrase of the famous Mark Twain quote seems especially appropriate considering the tone of recent letters here regarding Cedar Rapids' Metro High School. Claims have been made that many Metro programs and traditions are either already gone or are going away and that the administration fails to support the unique programming Metro has always been noted for.

These inaccuracies have created a negative and incorrect impression of the school.

Rather, Metro remains alive and well! It is successfully meeting the needs of students just as it has since its inception in 1974 - almost 40 years ago. The programs currently being taught and methods being used are just as innovative and effective today as those as those used previously.

Yes, there have been changes. As education has evolved, including within alternative education, change has been necessary to meet student needs.

Although the earlier opinions expressed were made by retired teachers with many years of service at Metro, I don't fit into that category. I am, however, married to someone who taught at Metro until retiring last year. My wife spent the last 16 years of her 39-year teaching career at Metro and always considered her time there as her most rewarding time in education. I am proud to note that, while there, she was named the Social Studies Teacher of the Year for Iowa in 2002.

With the background of hearing what was happening on a daily basis for that length of time, I feel I have a good understanding of what Metro “is all about” and feel that an outside voice addressing the earlier opinions is important.

It is from this perspective that I must respectfully disagree with the earlier writers. Metro is one of the best alternative education programs in the state, perhaps in the nation, and it has the recognitions to support that claim.

The negative implications expressed disrespect the current teachers, support staff, administration and - most important - the students. As always, the staff at Metro is of the highest caliber, extremely professional, caring, innovative and totally dedicated to the singular most important reason for them being there: their students.

Students go to alternative schools for myriad reasons and it takes special educators to recognize their unique needs and qualities and to know the types of individualized attention it will take to bring out the best in them.

The importance and uniqueness of the current staff was highlighted in another recent Gazette guest column, written by recent Metro graduate Tyler Irons and published May 19.

Certainly change can be difficult but it is also necessary. Examples of changes that have had to be addressed at Metro over the past decade include adhering to the regulations addressed in the federal “No Child Left Behind” law, including mandatory standardized testing. Although it's tempting to dismiss the value of such regulations, they define the standards to be used to measure the levels of improvements in students. As always, change must support compliance with regulations coupled with doing what is best for the students.

I am confident that Metro will continue to serve students for at least another 40 years. Not in its past or present form but in one that continues to evolve, meeting the ever-changing needs of its students. At the core of the program will always be the dedication of an exemplary staff - serving the needs of students and changing when necessary to meet those needs.

There are a lot of great things continuing to happen at Metro. Many have their roots in past programs but others have come about due to new technology, innovation and a changing educational environment.

Dan Adams is a retired Rockwell-Collins engineer and has lived in the Cedar Rapids area for 45 years. His wife, Beverly Grindeman-Adams, taught at Metro from 1996 until retiring in 2012. Comments: Dan@TheAdamses.net