In case you missed it -- particularly since this past week was school vacation week -- I wanted to call your attention to a new feature in The Telegraph and at www.nashuatelegraph.com.

In a front-page column in Thursday's Telegraph, education reporter Michael Brindley announced that he plans to start writing a Q&A column titled "Raise Your Hand." The new feature will appear every other Thursday, rotating with his current education column, "The Learning Curve."

In his own words:

"Every other week, I will be writing a column called 'Raise Your Hand,' a sort of Q&A on any topic related to education. The format will be taking questions submitted by people in the community and getting them answered. 

"The goal of this new venture is two-fold; I want to make what I write more interactive with readers, but I also want to make it more useful and reader-friendly. I want to ensure what I’m writing is what you want to read, and there’s no better way of doing that than by letting readers drive the content."

When I got into this business three decades ago, such talk coming from a reporter would have been heresy, particularly from a young reporter.

Reader-friendly? What you (emphasis mine) want to read? Letting readers drive the content?

In those days, at least at the newspapers I worked at, what the reader wanted was about the furthest thing from our minds. Who needed readers to tell us what they wanted? We knew what they wanted. At least we thought we did.

Today, more and more newspapers have come to the realization that is not necessarily the case. Any business out of touch with the needs of its customers isn't going to be in business very long. Newspapers are no exception.

Of course, that doesn't mean that we give up all control of our product. Nor does it mean we pander to the talk radio/cable TV story of the day. I don't know about you, but I don't want to pick up The Telegraph from my driveway each morning to find Anna Nicole or Paris Hilton splashed across the front page.

What it does mean is that we have a responsibility to engage our readers in a conversation about the things that matter in their lives. And if helping them to get answers about their children's education is one of them, then so be it.

To submit a question about education you would like answered, you can e-mail Michael at mbrindley@nashuatelegraph.com or you can mail him the old-fashioned way at 17 Executive Drive, Hudson, NH 03051.

Or if you see him around town, maybe you can just raise your hand.