Testimony of Gayane Hanyaloglu, Parker Parent, In Opposition to Section 4 of the Thrive Act, S.374

Good afternoon. My name is Gayane Hanyaloglu. I am a second grade teacher in a small district in central Massachusetts. I am also the proud mother of two incredible girls.

I love my job. It’s not even really a job – it’s a calling. After over two decades in the classroom, I know the joys, possibilities – and limitations – of traditional public schools.

When my oldest daughter was beginning middle school, she didn’t feel like she fit in. She was quiet, loved Shakespeare, and lacked confidence. We made the decision to enter her in the lottery at Parker Charter. It was one of the best decisions we ever made. At Parker, she was embraced for who she is and found confidence in her identity as a nerd. She is now thriving in her freshman year of college, earning her degree in library science.

My youngest is now at Parker. There’s no fading into the background at Parker. My shy little girl has quickly become a vocal leader.

The Parker approach – a small school environment, fully immersive project-based learning, no number or letter grades – is exactly what my daughters needed. As a teacher, having public school options like this doesn’t take away from my classroom or my district in any way. In fact, it helps us become stronger. Parker holds professional development programs, allowing teachers from across the state – and across the globe – to learn about practices they can bring back to their own classrooms.

I am a proud traditional public school teacher, and am grateful for the representation of my local union. But I am alarmed that the state leadership of our union has endorsed Senate bill 374, which proposes cutting funding and enrollment at charter public schools.

We should not be pitting public schools against one another. As a mother and teacher, I ask you to reject Section 4 of Senate bill 374.

Thank you.