Introducing Our New Series about the Changing American Dream

Greetings from Burke Patch!

At Patch, we're excited to inaugurate a new series for our readers: Dispatches: The Changing American Dream.

Every day, the national media is filled with stories about how American families, businesses, and neighborhoods are adjusting to these trying times. There are so many changes happening so fast it's dizzying: National debates about unemployment, foreclosures, debt, religion, government and private enterprise all touch on fundamental ways in which we see ourselves and our communities.

At Patch, we want to explore these conversations on a daily basis so we can better understand how we all adjusting to the challenges and opportunities surrounding us.

We don't think there's one American Dream, but a multitude of American Dreams toward which a multitude of people are working.

Here in Northern Virginia, we see businesses holding their breath, deciding whether to expand or hold steady; college graduates returning home because they can't find jobs; and senior citizens bringing boarders into their homes to help pay their bills.

We also see bold new volunteer efforts, inspiring stories of local businesses that succeed because they innovated, and locals who've taken these trying times as a signal to engage more, not less, in their government.

Nationally, there's a debate about which government-building efforts are "shovel-ready."  Locally, we know the improvements on the Beltway and the Dulles Metro project are a big part of Fairfax County's growth. But what do you see as the important projects for our nation, our state, and our community?

At the federal level, there's a debate about the education system, which is at the center of the American Dream of a better life for our children.  Locally, even though more than 90 percent of Fairfax County Public students passed Virginia’s Standards of Learning (SOL) tests last school year, about half of all schools in the county did not meet testing goals laid out by the No Child Left Behind Act.

The people best able to turn that around are our local parents, teachers and administrators, not national politicians.  We want to hear your insights and suggestions.

Dispatches will be built upon the compelling vignettes and snapshots we unearth across all Patch sites.

We're interested in your stories. We want to Dispatches to become an ongoing conversation. Please feel free to contact me with your thoughts.  Email me at susan.larson@patch.com, or find Burke Patch on Facebook or @BurkePatch on Twitter.

Sincerely,

Susan Larson
Editor, Burke Patch