Legislative Session Ends With Vote on Education

As the Legislative Session closes out with Education, it is all about Charter Schools. There is a "Trigger Bill" which is tied in to support for Charter Schools. Legislators are voting today on allowing parents to take over a school. You may think that giving these rights to parents is a good thing. In some communities it just might be.

But there are always the unintended consequences of passing a law to "help people." In this case the people we are supposed to be helping are children. They are dependent on their parents and a school system to provide for their well being and education. They are not able to vote for the people who represent them in this vote today or at the local School Board level.

If you were to spend a day or an hour at a low-performing school and talk to teachers, principals and parents you would hear some of the following concerns. Children who may or may not have a parent caring for them, may or may not have a home to live in, may or may not speak English, may or may not have balanced meals or even know what good nutrition is.

Having lived in government housing I remember all too well the influences of drugs and alcohol and divorce and many times children left alone. When a child is hungry or tired it is hard to sit and listen and learn. What made this country a great country was the family not government. I remember my father explaining that a large family was "social security". If someone got sick, old or a house burned down the family and friends came together to take care of what was needed. These days many families are scattered and broken and the government has come in with programs from breakfast to housing and after school care.

In days of tough economic times, we see government programs all having to cut back. The children who will do well are the ones who have strong families who provide for whatever is needed for their children. Parents taking over schools might sound like a great debate stand for the legislative platform discussion today, but we cannot assume there is a parent who is there or who can speak English or knows how to run a school.

Charter Schools are pushing for more funding at the same time. 

Charter Schools are not subject to the same rules as public schools. They can decide which students can and cannot attend, public schools cannot deny a child a seat. Some charter schools are non-profits and some are companies who make money on students. They have a business model which provides lessons with money left over for investors.

The business must be doing well since the national companies are lobbying for votes and running advertising on television which is very expensive. A charter school is funded by a dollar amount per child. The funding comes from the state to the local county and the local school board is allowed to keep 15% for administrative costs and the rest is passed on to the charter. The local school board is required to provide for administrative reviews, grade level curriculum support and many times transportation is provided at a cost to the charter schools from the district.

Public Education is being redefined in America. If you do not have a child in school, consider yourself on the Board of Directors for public education because your tax dollars pay for education. If you are a parent, get involved and support wherever your child attends. Public or private or charter schools will all tell you that the best success for their school is a combination of prepared students, prepared teachers and a supportive community.

Thank You for taking the time to read about education and my contact info is listed if you have questions, comments or concerns. 

Julie Aranibar
email: julie.aranibar@live.com
cell: 941.705.1010