(Ed's note: Following is a letter to Dr. Gordon responding to his reply to a letter sent by the writer. It is reprinted at the writer's request.)

Just a brief note to thank you for your comprehensive response to my letter of Oct. 30. I am pleased with the short-term initiatives that you have implemented in this last year, and look forward to seeing your long-term goals come to fruition. After all, I will continue to have children in the Port system for many years to come.

If I may, I'd like to make a comment on two separate pieces of text in your letter. In paragraph one on page one you wrote, "...test scores are a norm that receive much publicity without any explanatory detail. Nevertheless, they are a necessary reality that must be addressed, and they ought to be as well." I couldn't agree with you more. I frankly never doubted the excellence of our district. I, in fact, know many of our Schreiber graduates and where they attend college. However, in a vacuum the reported tests results paint an unflattering picture of our schools and perhaps our community. It is for this reason that you may wish to consider publishing your letter to me in a more public venue. I am sure many concerned Port families would appreciate your thoughtful words and solutions.

On page three you wrote, "...teaching to the skills of the test is far different than teaching to the test itself." Bravo to you, sir! Your statement has been the single greatest bone of contention among parents of young grade-schoolers for years. Our teachers, in test years, simply teach to the test. I hope, however, through your intervention, that culture can be changed.

Remember, "Give the child a fish and he eats today. Teach the child to fish and he eats for a lifetime."

Thank you for your time.

Dean C. DiMaggio