Have Your Say About Education, Join Our Bus Trip to Sacramento

Last November, voters across California approved increasing sales and income taxes to add funding back to our schools and colleges. Just how the money will be restored will be debated in the coming months, with a number of proposals under study now.

Under one proposal, it would take seven years to restore school funding to where it was in 2007. Seven years is a long time to wait. A first-grader in August 2007 will have graduated from high school before school funding is returned to the level it was when he or she started school. Under another proposal, funding for all schools would be increased sooner, but it still would be a number of years before funding is fully restored and still more time before programs can be back on track.

The education of an entire generation of students is based on this decision. Too many of our children continue to go to schools that lack adequate classroom and lab supplies, use outdated textbooks and materials, can’t provide field trips or music, art, and sports programs. 

Do you, as a taxpayer, want a say in how our dollars are used to educate the future leaders of California? Then join us on May 29, 2013, on our 11th annual bus trip to Sacramento to speak with our legislators about the quality of education our students need. 

Over the years, we have taken more than 1,000 community members, parents, students, teachers, educational leaders, and others interested in quality education to discuss our concerns with our legislators.

With so many proposals on the table, it is important for us to continue the conversations to be sure that the best funding formula is selected. It is, after all, our taxpayer dollars that are being spent to support the schools.

I am very pleased that this year’s free trip, which includes a light breakfast and lunch, will be co-sponsored by the Silicon Valley Education Foundation. The buses leave at 6 a.m. from San Jose and return from Sacramento at 6 p.m.  

As a parent and a Santa Clara County supervisor, I believe it is important to fight for better funding for education. A student’s education also has an impact on his or her use of county services now and in the future.

Without adequate funding for education, more youth get into trouble, fail to graduate from high schools and end up in the county’s juvenile justice system or jail. This means that the county—the provider of social services, health care and public safety—has an enormous stake in the fight for quality education. 

I hope you will be able to join us on May 29 on the bus trip to Sacramento. Our students need and deserve a high quality education. It is imperative that we get together and make our voices heard in Sacramento. 

To register, please visit my website www.supervisorcortese.org, or call 408-299-5030. Also, if you are a part of an organization that would like to partner with us for this trip, please e-mail Lara McCabe at lara.mccabe@bos.sccgov.org for details.