We are currently living in a time
when our nation’s economy is still recovering from the worst economic collapse
since the Great Depression. At the same time, our schools have steadily
declined in their effectiveness due to a significant decrease in funding, which
is a direct correlation to our nations social ranking amongst other advanced
civilizations. With income not coming in as easily as before for the average
citizen, taxpayers want to make sure that their funds are being allocated to a department which they feel requires the most support in this
ailing economy. Simply put, in order for our future generations to successfully
increase our nation's socio-economic status, we must make sure our educational
systems are being operated at a qualified and sufficient rate. Proposition 30
provides the necessary funds to make sure this remains possible.
Now,
if you are not yet familiar with Proposition 30, here are some details.
Proposition 30, Governor Brown’s proposal for a temporary increase in income
and sales tax, is designed to benefit our schools in the most efficient manner
possible. The proposition intends to do this in two ways: raise income taxes
1-3% for seven years to the “most blessed” Californians (individuals making over
$250,000 or families bringing in more than $500,000), and raising the sales tax
one-fourth of a cent for four years, equating to a penny more on a $4 sandwich.
This tax-hike, while both reasonable and manageable, would be providing $6-9
billion dollars to our schools, with 89% of the revenue going to K-12 and 11%
going to the community colleges. If the proposition fails to pass, there would
be spending reductions of about $6 billion from our school systems. About $5.5
billion would be taken away from K-12, resulting in three weeks of school being
cut, while the California State University system would lose $250 million,
which would in turn cause tuition to go up an additional $150 for spring
classes.
As
a product of the K-12 compulsory public school system and current community
college student in the state of California, I can personally attest to drastic financial
cuts that have shaped my educational experience thus far. The effects were
easily seen in my high school years, when classes were getting cut, teachers
were given "pink-slips" yearly, and departments were either being cut
entirely or severely underfunded. I noticed average class sizes increasing year
after year and prices throughout the cafeteria rising tremendously; a bag of
chips that cost $.75 my freshmen year ended up being $1.25 by my junior year. I
witnessed multiple teachers crying when pink slips were handed out, and
occurrences like these really makes you feel angered towards our government. I
also frequently witnessed teachers that would dismiss their class a minute
early at the end of the day so they were able to run to the student pick-up lot
and hand out fliers to parents regarding the drastic cuts towards their child's
education. This effort to bring awareness to the community proved that this is not
a simple matter at hand, and some action should be executed immediately in
order to minimize the amount of funding being taken away from our school
systems every year.
On
top of this, I frequently think about how my educational experience drastically
differs from what our parents or even my eldest sibling (who is thirty-three
years of age) went through. When my parents attended school, they were given a
tremendous amount of flexibility in terms of the variety of classes they could
sign up for and the quantity of those classes. This freedom ultimately provided
them with a stress-free and opportunistic approach towards completing their education
goals. Now, not only are the variety of classes diminishing, but the number of
classes offered towards even a student's major are shrinking, causing some
students to stay in school longer and taking "filler-classes" to
fulfill their financial-aid credit requirements. This epidemic has even spawned
a new unofficial grade of college students, noted as "Super Seniors,"
or, those students who are required to remain in college after their fourth
year. I long for my future children to receive the type of education my parents
received, where they are not constantly reminded of the financial cuts that are
affecting them daily, and they can finally able to relive the golden years of
education in California.
With
the projected money being sent to our school systems from Prop. 30, schools can
begin to reverse their financial problems and begin to grow and advance into a
system that will better prepare the future of this nation. Friedrich Huebler,
who works as an analyst for International Education Statistics, has found that
a nation’s wealth and the education of its population are highly correlated. As
Huebler states, “The relationship between national wealth and years of
education can be illustrated with a comparison of national data on school life
expectancy (SLE) and gross domestic product (GDP) per capita. […] The
[research] clearly demonstrates that GDP per capita is positively correlated
with school life expectancy” (Huebler). Essentially, the United States’ ability
to compete with other nations both economically and socially relies heavily on
the quality and quantity of the education given to our children. If Prop. 30
does not receive enough votes to pass, we are virtually reducing our nations
ability to contend with other societies, since we are reducing the quality of
education given to our children. An uneducated and unprepared mass would not
allow our future leaders to effectively handle any issues that arise during
their time. The future of our nation depends greatly on the strength of our
education.
With
something as education being such a substantial aspect of every nation, it is
only wrong to skimp on the funding of our schools, as it affects the entire
nation as a whole and not just the current students at hand. Our country’s
future greatly depends on the level of preparedness and overall competence that
our future leaders must possess, and to reduce any spending towards education
will only hinder this process. This is why it is extremely vital for Prop. 30
to pass. Opponents of the proposition argue that California holds some of the
highest tax rates in the country, but those people fail to recognize that the
overall tax burden will be lower than what it was two years ago, while overall
general funding (which will be $11.6 billion lower than five years ago) will
represent the same share of the economy as in 1972-73. These statistics show
that revenue gained from this initiative will not constitute reckless spending.
Although it may be years before we have completely stabilized our schooling
system to the level that our parents have experienced in their time, it is
definitely the first and most crucial step that will allow for this
re-stabilization to begin.
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