Messy Details in Splitting School Districts

1. Sonja Mitchell said:

Statistics are used ad nauseum to support the brilliance of our schools low funding. Statistical slogans are carefully crafted to dilute important issues. The devil is in the details, not the statistical conclusions.

As for splitting districts, until citizens shift their financial priorities towards education, I believe this is the wrong question.

I propose a set of more logical questions be asked by citizens and the legislator's they empower:

"How much higher would our property values be if Utah were famous for our small classrooms and high test performances on all grade levels?"

"How much better could our student's do if their classroom sizes were smaller (my grandson had 28 children in his kindergarten class this year!)"

"Why is it our student's never seem to learn their multiplication/division tables and 30% failed their math USCAT tests this year?"

"What quality of teacher would our districts attract if they were paid fair wages and compensation packages?"

"Who is monitoring to insure the districts are properly managing the huge growth rates in certain communities?"

Playgrounds are filled in with portable classrooms. "Is this planned? Do these portable classrooms pass the latest earthquake standards for safety?"

"Where is all the tax money going from the increased revenue of all the new housing on the West Side of Salt Lake County and other neighborhoods with overcrowded classrooms?"

Legislators are elected by Utah citizens; therefore, it is the citizens of Utah that vote who demonstrate a low priority for education if the cost-per-student, salaries and benefits paid to teachers, and class size are used to measure the legislature's priorities.

What a confusing message we send to teachers, students, and parents. We care but are unwilling to fund.

Once again, by presenting the question of splitting districts, those who are seemingly allergic to paying a fair tax sufficiently allocated to support education are shifting the publics attention from their immoral choices to underfund the education of Utah's children to more trivial matters of concern.

Recutting the puzzle into different size pieces won't solve the systemic problem of underfunding.

As a higher percentage of Utahn's who vote have higher incomes, public edcuation seems to be less important to the privileged probably because they can afford private lessons, tutors, and even private schools.

Actually, if they have their way, all taxpayers will help pay for their children's private schooling with vouchers. You really have to show up and vote if you don't want to help them succeed with this agenda.

How shortsighted of the privileged!

A community famous for its high quality public educational system and safety is a sure way to increase and maintain high property values. Check out Cohasset, Massachusetts and Falmouth, Maine.

Wouldn't it be wonderful if highly-skilled, professional parents concerned for the education of their children would be willing to pay top dollar for a home in Utah?

Sometimes spending money on important things is the best way to insure profits.

I know our purported moral and decent population can do a better job supporting the education of Utah's students before worrying about how to split districts.

Actually, splitting districts is suspect as a ploy to sluff off financial responsibility for poorer neighborhoods from wealthier neighborhoods.

I certainly hope this is not the case. This model of districting in other parts of the country has created crime-ridden ghettos.

We live in too close a proximity to frustrate populations to the brink of high crime.

It could be one of your children who die at the hands of the criminals we produce because we don't care enough to provide them with an adequate education.

"And there were no poor among them"

Sincerely,

Sonja Mitchell

Herriman