07/21/2020
Dear Friends of Free To Be,
As some of you may know, Stockton University leadership recently announced that Free to Be would be closing permanently after 46 years of operation.
We were all caught off-guard by an email update that was sent a few weeks ago to staff and families, including the Free to Be Co-Op board. The email cited “financial challenges” and the need to “locate the cost-savings that will allow [the University] to fulfill our core mission”. Although many expected that Free to Be may not re-open in the fall due to the pandemic, no one in the Free to Be community expected the center to permanently close. The fact that this decision was “announced to” rather than “discussed with” the Free to Be community was an added blow. Stockton leadership’s refusal to meet and consider creative solutions is also deflating.
Needless to say, many of us are working through the shock and heartbreak. For nearly five decades Free to Be has nurtured the minds and hearts of young children, cultivated future generations of teachers, made it possible for nontraditional college students to pursue academic pursuits, and built bridges with the larger community.
I’m emailing you to ask for your help.
Please consider writing a letter to Stockton University leadership. To help make this easier, below is a template you could use and adapt to your needs. Please write from the heart about what Free to Be has meant to you and/or your family. When the letter is complete, please send it to:
⦁ President Kesselman: ⦁ [email protected]
⦁ Interim Provost McDonald: ⦁ [email protected]
⦁ Dean of Education Keenan: ⦁ [email protected]
Please share this information far and wide. Thank you so much for your support. Free to Be has meant so much to so many. With your help maybe we can get a seat at the table to brainstorm alternative ways forward so that Free to Be can live on.
Yours truly,
The Free To Be Team
TEMPLATE:
Dear President Kesselman, Interim Provost McDonald, and Dean Keenan,
I’m writing to express my profound disappointment related to your decision to permanently close Free to Be.
I can speak to the many benefits of Free to Be because of my firsthand experience as a STUDENT/ ALUMNUS//TEACHER/PARENT/ETC. ADD TEXT HERE THAT SPEAKS TO YOUR PERSONAL EXPERIENCES.
I strongly encourage your administration to take the following actions:
⦁ Reverse any permanent decision to close Free to Be.
⦁ Meet with Free to Be stakeholders. I understand that you have been unwilling to meet with Free to Be staff or families when making the decision to close Free to Be. I ask that you convene a series of meetings with Free to Be stakeholders to listen and collaborate on identifying new and innovative solutions to keep Free to Be open.
⦁ Identify immediate and long-term solutions. Work with stakeholders to identify immediate solutions to staying open through the pandemic. Then, use ongoing working meetings with stakeholders to identify a sustainable solution for Free to Be that is beneficial to the University, the community, and the families and children it serves.
Sincerely,
ADD FIRST AND LAST NAME
ADD CONTACT INFORMATION (PHONE, ETC.)
