What Should Be the Role of the Federal Government in Public Education?

Here's a recent headline from The Huffington Post: Sequestration 2013: How Many Teachers Could Your State Lose? This leads me to wonder about the role of the federal government in public education. What should it be? This is a question that deserves to be pondered with careful deliberation. This most recent federal fiscal crisis does not provide the opportunity for that discussion.

My Email to Betsy and Brad

This is the text of the email that I just sent to my Oregon state representative, Brad Witt, and state senator, Betsy Johnson:

Betsy and Brad:

The 2012 final report of the Quality Education Commission states that $8.755 billion should be appropriated to fund Oregon K-12 public education in order for the QEM model to be fully funded for the 2013-15 biennium. It gives a figure of $6.315 billion as the minimum amount to avoid a "loss" of funding from the current level. The lower figure is absolutely inadequate if Oregon K-12 education is to meet the minimal needs of Oregon students and it seems impossible that the higher figure is attainable at this time.

The QEM Commission proposes a third figure that will begin to close the gap between the minimum and the required funding levels: $6.895 billion. I encourage you both to use this figure as the minimum level that you will accept as you work to adopt a state budget this year.

I understand that his will require sacrifices in other programs, including funding of PERS. As a public school teacher and future recipient of PERS benefits, I am willing to accept a possible reduction in those benefits as other changes such as the closing of some tax loopholes are made as well.

 

Thank you for your consideration of my views.

An article in The Sunday Oregonian indicates that there is the possibility of beginning to stabilize K-12 education in Oregon. Please contact your Oregon state representative and state senator to fund Oregon K-12 public education at a minimum of $6.895 billion for the 2013-15 biennium.

Amen and amen!

From "Letters to the Editor", The Oregonian, February 16:

Funding education

Oregon chief education officer Rudy Crew wants to "fix" our schools by changing their "educational architecture" and buying a lot of new technology ("Call for new 'educational architecture' in Oregon," Feb. 11).

Our present model doesn't serve students well, he says, completely ignoring the effects of years of inadequate funding on the schools we have. Remember the state's Quality Education Model? In every biennium, the gap between what the QEM has established as resources needed and actual funding has grown. That gap was $1.64 billion in 2007-9 and is projected to be $2.44 billion in 2013-15. This reminds me of G.K. Chesterton's words: "Christianity has not been tried and found wanting; it has been found difficult and not tried."

In Oregon, stable, adequate and equitable funding has been found difficult and not tried. Instead, our leaders continue to take resources out of classrooms, spending scarce education dollars on bureaucracy, consultants, testing and expensive technology. Let's focus on the basics: students and teachers working together in schools that are supported with the wherewithal for learning.

Until we try appropriately funded schools, we won't know how effective they can be.

WENDY SWANSON 
Southwest Portland  
Swanson is an education instructor at Portland State University and has 31 years of elementary teaching experience in Oregon.