Are you following the money?

It is interesting to me how we come about choosing sides on issues. Especially when public funds are at stake. Are you following your tax dollars? The current battle over Common Core State Standards (CCSS or Common Core) is an excellent example of how we miss the larger problem (Government Spending) when getting in the weeds over one of the largest portions of our State Budget EDUCATION. Make no mistake it is a battle of gargantuan proportions.

I have no problem with standards or metrics, they can be a tool in improving outcomes. For CCSS proponents this argument is central to the desire to improve public education, but it also requires you to accept the premise that education is a responsibility of government.

We hear that our education system is inferior to other countries, so we must do something (spend money) to improve it. After all business needs better students to bring into the work force. This raises the question: What is the relationship of business to government? Business is an organization, a group of people who work together to create profits. CCSS is a real potential profit center for business. Think about hardware, software, databases, networks and the thousands of jobs created to implement the CCS Standards.

Is it just my observation or can we agree that education is a process. Education occurs in many places, not just the classroom, not in just in our churches or athletic fields. Can we not agree that is the responsibility of parents to shepherd their children toward adulthood. Success in life is closely tied to family life and interactions amongst the people closest to us. There is no amount of money that can change the importance of parental love and sacrifice. That is where the future possibility of a child succeeding and finding happiness rests, the parents.

What we see going on in Common Core is a shift away from local control, a shift towards centralization at the State level. This concerns me greatly. The idea of local control is based on the concept that we elect a school board to make these decisions, not State legislators. Public money from the State should be left at the discretion of the elected officials most closely tied to the electorate, the school board. In Gwinnett County we need look no further than Buford. Just look at their success and you will see why local control is the issue. I recommend you read this study if you are interested in learning more.

STRUCTURE OF SCHOOL DISTRICTS IN GEORGIA ECONOMIES OF SCALE AND DETERMINANTS OF CONSOLIDATION

 L. F. Jameson Boex Jorge Martinez-Vasquez FRP Report No. 16 July 1998

As with most decisions in government, particularly when you, the taxpayer, will be the one paying for the decisions made by your elected representative, it is important to understand how money is used to shape the issues, the winners and losers in legislation. I think it is time for the voters to take back control of their money and work to keep education spending in local hands. It is after all your money.