Fighting for Our Children’s Future by Julie Taylor Monetta

            “Knowledge is power. Information is liberating. Education is the premise of progress,

                                       in every society, in every family.”     ~Kofi Annan

When I last wrote for Ecclesio, it was to bring attention to the building decline of public education; the history and background of how it has happened, the deterioration of the teaching profession, and a call to action for citizens and parents to be aware of what was happening and to speak up.

In the last 18-ish months since then, it’s been…well, interesting…

In the spring of 2017, the president shared his first education budget. It included a 9.2 billion dollar cut to the education department—cuts to mental health services, advanced coursework opportunities, after-school services, teacher training initiatives, and class reduction programs.

It would also propose cuts to secondary financial aid and work study programs.

On the other hand, Trump’s budget did propose to spend $400 million on school choice and voucher programs.

There were cuts made to the Education Department itself, in the form of staff for the Office for Civil Rights. But additional money was used to ensure the use of U.S. Marshalls in providing security for Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, as opposed to the typical in-house security.

Not all of these cuts have made it through Congress, but there are still efforts to enact those that haven’t yet.

Yep. Education has continued to take hits with the new president and his cabinet.

Besides the education budgets, this administration is hurting our students in other ways. Last fall, Betsy DeVos has rescinded 72 guidance documents that assist parents and teachers in advocating for our kids. There hasn’t been as much success in changing the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. But if parents don’t know the law and aren’t sure how to advocate for their child, then the laws themselves are moot.

You can read here about the guidance documents that have been stripped, including how schools find it confusing to know how they can legally spend their special education funding.

Besides the threats to Special Education programs, there has also been a threat to the Office For English Language Learners. Thankfully, Congress has thus far been able to resist these and other direct attacks on public education.

Meanwhile, teachers’ salaries across the country have continued to decrease, while health care premiums have increased. It got so bad in Oklahoma that many schools went to four-day weeks-not only saving on heat, transportation, and other expenses, but also giving teachers a day to supplement incomes by working at local Wal-marts and taking other jobs to pay their bills.

Teachers tend to be pretty altruistic. They do not get into this field for the money—trust me, there are much easier ways to make much more money. But we do tend to give much of ourselves. That said, there is a limit. When I began teaching in the early 90’s, the average salary for an educator was approximately 5% less than other professions with similar education. By 2018, that gap has increased. Most of the teachers in our country make a salary that is as much as 20% less than equal education and experience offer in other professions.

As indicated in my previous post, this crisis has been building for a while. The Trump Administration did not create this hot mess, but they most certainly have exacerbated it quickly. Last year, I stated that until the public begins speaking up en masse, this would continue and get worse. Well, people have begun speaking up.

Beginning with teachers. A common headline in 2018 has been about teacher strikes, often in very red states with very nice teachers who have put up with this downward spiral for years. States like those same Oklahoma teachers who have been working extra jobs on their Fridays; but also in states like Colorado, Washington, Arizona, and others.

While educators have finally begun advocating for themselves and their own families, they are also speaking up for their students. When funding has been cut beyond the bone for years, it shows. Besides fair living wages, teachers are speaking up for updated, safe buildings, intact desks and furniture, teachings resources and materials, and reasonable class sizes.

Parents have begun speaking up more, as well. Parents across the country are angry and frustrated about class sizes and  the effects of budget cuts and charter school inequities, not to mention charter school corruption.

This gives me hope. I’m not sure public education has even been in this level of rough shape since its inception. But I do believe that the public-teachers, parents, and caring citizens are realizing what our children and our country will lose if public education is allowed to fail. The fight for ALL of our children’s futures has begun.

In last week’s Ecclesio, Elizabeth Hinson-Hasty  shared her thoughts on wealth inequity, education, and the effects of these on communities. She ends with an appeal to readers to become more educated about these dynamics, educate others, and to volunteer at local schools. I whole-heartedly agree with her positions, as well as her tools for improvement.

But in ending, I will add one more encouragement. We get the government (and the policies) that we allow. So, on November 6th, please make it clear that you will no longer allow our children’s futures to be sold. Please vote for candidates that will support our public schools and ensure their survival.

 

Julie Monetta is a veteran teacher and literacy specialist. Over the last 25 years, she has taught kindergarten through college in the Midwest. She currently works with educators providing professional development, coaching, and curriculum development.