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undertake a thorough review and it should run for at least six months. Certainly bond committees run that long. Finally, we do have a list of about eight questions, specific questions that we are hoping to get an answer by that task force. It would be the things that have already been mentioned like what academic programs would be, would there be money savings, how would teachers and support staff be allocated, would teachers be reassigned between schools, what would school attendance zones be. And finally, the representatives of the boards of education and the PTAs should get a chance to examine the results of that review and comment on it. So, that's the position that a group of roughly 20 parents sitting in the art classroom at McDougle Elementary School took. And I hope you will take it to heart. Randy Sharpe: I'm Randy Sharpe, a parent of two children in the Chapel Hill-Carrboro school system. One of the primary reasons that my wife and I moved to Chapel Hill was the excellent schools. When we were house hunting, we only considered homes in the Chapel Hill-Carrboro school district. Based on real estate listings, it is apparent that the school system factored into the decision of many other families that now live in Chapel Hill. One of my concerns is that families outside of the Chapel Hill-Carrboro school district would not be willing to support the funding necessary to maintain the programs that we value. I'm concerned that my children's education could be compromised. And I can't see how it could possibly be improved by merger. I am opposed to the merger of the Chapel Hill-Carrboro and Orange County schools. Mike Kelley: Hello, my name is Mike Kelley and I'm a parent, live in Chapel Hill, and I have four children. I don't have prepared comments, but I would like to share with you an example from my professional life that I think is applicable to this particular situation. But first I'd just like to thank Moses Carey, because I think one of the things that has come from this is the realization of what excellent schools we have in both systems. Going on to my professional experience here, I am a physician, and I am frequently faced with very difficult decisions, and this is clearly a very difficult decision that you will make. In making decisions as a physician, there is a very simple principle that we use, and that is self-determination. We don't make decisions for patients if we can avoid it - especially difficult decisions. And I ask you to respect that, which is also a principle in our government. Thank you. Joe Nanney: Good evening. My name is Joe Nanney, I have a son who is a second grader at Scroggs Elementary, I have a daughter who will be in kindergarten at Scroggs next year. I've heard a lot of talk about how to make the merger happen. We are blessed with a wonderful staff who could tell us how you do it. They have demonstrated that they understand, grasp the concepts, but what we're not talking about is why. And think that's the fundamental question that is before you that needs to be answered in an open or public way. What are the goals and how do we achieve those goals? Is merger the way that we achieve those goals? In 1986, the study commission said, "We're not going to do it now. It's not time to do it now. Maybe in the future, it will be time to do it, but not yet." My question is what has changed? In the 17 years, our community has changed, there's no question. I moved here in 1988, and between that time and now it's changed, dramatically. But what's the basis for the conclusion that