Public Education - Amen!

As both readers of this blog know, I resided in Ft. Wayne for quite some time. Regrettably, over the years, Ft. Wayne has devolved into FoxNewsland, but mercifully some common sense remains. Take, for example, this fine letter printed in the Ft. Wayne Journal Gazette just today:

As a parent, former teacher and guidance counselor, and current school board member, I was pleased to see so many parents engaged and involved in the recent reinstatement of honors classes in Fort Wayne Community Schools.

While we all may view this as a victory, we must remain vigilant because the attack on public education continues in Indiana.

We have seen public dollars educating more children under the guise of “school choice.” We have seen an attack on teachers by stripping them of their unions, evaluating them with students' test scores and keeping their incomes stagnant for an incomprehensible amount of time.

We have been comparing apples to oranges as the legislature and State Board of Education constantly change how we grade schools and which high-stakes tests we will use to do this.

We have seen poorly performing charter schools be forgiven their debts while many public schools are struggling to sustain financial stability due to budget cuts and tax caps.

Parents have seen the strength a committed, determined group of parents can have. They've seen the power of persuasion work in their favor.

I commend them for their efforts, but I encourage them to keep the momentum going by becoming more informed and more active.

Our public schools should be the pride of our communities and should continue to provide a strong, equal education to all students. It's time to start paying attention. It's time to put an end to the attack on public education.

Parents, you can do this! Continue your fight – not just for your children, but for all children so that they, too, can have equal access to a great public education.

Anne Duff

Northeast Indiana Friends of Public Education

Bravo!

Generally, when I quote a letter on this blog, I don't include the name of the writer. However, this is just so powerful I believe that the writer deserves credit.

Also, ironically, I was listening to the radio this morning and came to learn of a state law that requires public schools to sell surplus buildings to charter school operators for $1.00. That's right: $1. This includes, as was explicitly discussed in the story, Broad Ripple H.S.

I'm no real estate expert, but I suspect that the enormous building, right at the end of Broad Ripple Ave., that sits on numerous acres, is worth more than $1, particularly given that a 3-BR, 2400-sq. ft.  in Broad Ripple sells for more than $220,000.

I find it particularly galling that IPS, which is undergoing significant budget problems in the face of consistent cuts from the state legislature as well as a shrinking enrollment, is unable to alienate that building for its market value. To underscore the double standard, recall, as indicated in the letter quoted above, that charter schools consistently have loans from the state forgiven.

Folks, these are our schools. We are the ones responsible for them; we are the ones responsible for protecting their budgets. School children can't afford well-heeled lobbyists; they depend on the members of the community to advocate on their behalf.