This post was written as an article for this month’s Arundel PTA newsletter by Heather Mannion, a “…1st grader\u2019s mom, entering 2010 kindergartener\u2019s mom, and volunteer”. She was gracious enough to allow me to post it on my blog.<\/p>\n
I think Heather’s article does a great job of summarizing in one place just what’s at stake, and what every San Carlos parent should do about it.<\/p>\n
This is a personal editorial and does not officially reflect the views of either the PTA or the San Carlos Educational Foundation. <\/em><\/p>\n I\u2019m mad. I\u2019m angry at what the state of California has done to our schools. You may have heard this statistic: California currently ranks 47th in the nation in per student funding. Yet California is the tenth largest economy in the world. That\u2019s quite a disconnect. And with these budget cuts, it\u2019s likely we\u2019ll be at the bottom very soon. Our schools are being utterly and systematically dismantled. Every parent with a child in California should be profoundly angry.<\/p>\n It is immoral and unfair. Thinking outside of our district and state-wide for a moment\u2026 if these severe cuts are occurring in our district, with a $1M educational foundation at its back, just think of what\u2019s happening in districts without the means to raise funds independently. Their school walls are crumbling — literally. Or their schools are simply shutting down.<\/p>\n As we look at the situation in San Carlos, there\u2019s an inclination to get mired in the school board\u2019s list of potential cuts and analyze what we believe our schools need and don\u2019t need. We all should do this. While we all want to save our programs (and all have different opinions about which ones to save), as we fight to save particular budget line items, let\u2019s try not to lose track of the big picture.\u00a0 How did we get here? What is wrong with California? \u00a0And why are we hit so hard in San Carlos?<\/p>\n One way to explain the current crisis is to look at the way California schools typically get funded. In our district, think of it as an equation: local ongoing property tax revenue + state\/federal funding + periodic parcel taxes + non-profit foundation funding = school funds.<\/p>\n That\u2019s a lot of bad news. Instead of simply getting angry, however, let\u2019s ask ourselves: WHAT CAN WE DO ABOUT THIS??? The good news is that our community is energized, motivated and now mobilizing to fight back. I\u2019m sensing a groundswell of volunteer energy, and a lot of interest in making our situation better.<\/p>\n SHORT TERM \u2013 RIGHT NOW<\/strong>:<\/p>\n ONGOING<\/strong> \u2013 ALL THE TIME<\/strong>:<\/strong><\/p>\n So —<\/p>\n Don\u2019t move. MOBILIZE.<\/p>\n Don\u2019t fret. FIGHT.<\/p>\n Don\u2019t worry. WRITE.<\/p>\n Let\u2019s channel our anger into a fury of community activism. Now\u2019s the time – President Obama is motivating people all over the country to take on challenges just like these. Let\u2019s make some noise. Tell Sacramento we\u2019ve had enough. Support SCEF. Write our leaders. Get involved. <\/strong>Save our San Carlos schools, and in so doing, help improve education for all of California\u2019s kids.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" This post was written as an article for this month’s Arundel PTA newsletter by Heather Mannion, a “…1st grader\u2019s mom, entering 2010 kindergartener\u2019s mom, and volunteer”. She was gracious enough to allow me to post it on my blog. I … Continue reading \n
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\nState Capital Building
\nSacramento, CA 95814<\/li>\n
\n160 Old Town and Country Village
\nPalo Alto CA , 94301<\/li>\n
\nCapital Office
\nP.O. Box 942849
\nSacramento, CA 94249-0021<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n