Eyes Wide Open

 

Eyes Wide Open

 

 

     Public education in Maine, and the nation, has slowly been chipped away at by politicians. It is time for all of us to consider our next steps in supporting it. Retired public school teachers...it is time to give back. Stand up and make your voices heard. You and I can tell the stories of children and the positive benefits of public education done right. Let the erosion of our schools stop. Many of us taught in schools much different than the schools today. It is hard to say when the turning point was, but  'public education has been in increasingly hot water' long enough. (Do you remember the boiling frog syndrome? If you drop a frog directly into boiling water, it will try desperately to jump out to survive... if the frog is swimming in water that is slowly increased in temperature, it won't notice until the water has reached too high a temperature and will perish unknowingly?) The slow imperceptible danger to public education has been increasingly revealing itself.  School employees have been treading 'water of higher and higher temperatures' trying to stay afloat buffeted by shifting budgets, political mandates, and big business creeping in, aided by politicians who care not a whit about student achievement, but care immensely about supporting private business and lining their pockets with public money. It is time for all who believe in public education to see the true motives of those who are claiming public education has failed. It has not failed. Public education is a cornerstone of our democracy. Public education is not too costly.

     We can start right here in Maine and reveal the true motives of LePage's proposed budget. He has not been an advocate for public education since the day he took the oath of office as Governor of Maine. He attempts to destabilize public education. He imports foes of public education into the executive and legislative branches of state government. He pursues funding reductions and shifting. He abhors employee/teachers rights. He undermines effective leadership locally and at the state level. He has refused to nominate a Commissioner of Education, and thus the Department of Education has for several years lacked true effective leadership. His first Commissioner of Education brought the same tactics used in Southern states to create legislation, policies and procedures for Maine that mimic those in Southern states. This Commissioner hightailed it for greener pastures out of Maine as soon as a lucrative offer presented itself. Then an interim Commissioner was appointed, then made Commissioner, then fell ill and left the post. Another interim. Then a proclamation that he (LePage) himself would be the Commissioner of Education AND be the Governor at the same time. Now another interim.

     When Maine student achievement rates are compared to student achievement rates in Southern states, Maine students rank higher. Maine high school graduation rates are among the top 15 in the country. Why would Mainers want to emulate schools in the southern part of the US? Public schools in Maine have been making positive changes with regard to closing the achievement gaps that exist. The persistent geographical, racial, and income disparity that exists in parts of Maine is brought to school with the children who live within these areas and is reflected in their achievement rates. Yes, let's work to address this. Let's do it in a way that doesn't penalize every public school in Maine. We can start by letting schools keep their Federal Title 1 money that is intended to be supplementary money to address the learning needs of students who live in poverty. The state of Maine actually DEDUCTS this amount of money from their school subsidy.

 

     I would also echo support for state funding priorities made in the PICUS report that legislators commissioned several years ago and the most recent Blue Ribbon Commission on School Funding and Student Achievement seemed to be coalescing around:

 

1. Supporting programs for children who live in poverty, including afterschool and summer programs;

2. Supporting full day publicly supported programs within our schools for 3 and 4 year olds, thus creating public pre K - 12th grade educational opportunities;

3. Supporting additional embedded professional development opportunities for teachers.

  

     Let's not allow LePage to derail these recommendations. Let's tell our legislators to recall the PICUS report they commissioned and fund public education appropriately.

 

     Governor LePage has said he will call for an end to the use of the school funding formula, the Essential programs and Services or EPS formula, in his proposed 2017 budget.  I haven't heard about any alternative way to determine future state education subsidy to towns and cities across Maine. Whimsical budgeting. The PICUS report found the EPS to be equitable, even though it found Maine underfunds education statewide by $350 million. To do away with the funding formula will likely further exacerbate the financial difficulties of some Maine communities to fund education in their areas. LePage doesn't like the way the formula defines the amount of money schools need to offer basic services. I don't know many people who only want a basic education for their children. Federal and state politicians have for years been yelling for excellent education for all students. Why should we only acknowledge funding for just a basic education?  In a previous budget, LePage unilaterally altered the EPS and included the costs of teacher retirement within the formula which didn't exist before, essentially reducing school budgets across the state by this amount.  (See my Oct. 19, 2016 'Experience Counts -School Funding' post; Oct. 29, 2016 ' Question 2 and ESP Funding Formula' post for more details on EPS)  I was a member of my town's local school board in the early years of his first term. He started by angrily calling for local school boards to work with him. Translation: I don't like local school boards.  He boisterously demanded that school superintendents 'get out of his way'. Translation: I don't like school superintendents. He has attacked the school teachers unions. Translation: I don't like unions. His goal is to weaken local control and employee protections by any and all means so that he can further erode the institution of public education. His call for one statewide teacher contract to address funding disparities - just smoke and mirrors. One state (politically controlled) contract will weaken employee protections, opening the door to further destabilization and destruction. He threatens to withhold money if he doesn't get his way. He, like many Republicans across the country, wants to eliminate having to pay for public education and transfer money spent supporting public education to the private sector, ie. businesses. (Diane Ravitch exposes this in her book, "Reign of Error" - I highly recommend this book for understanding the insidious historical attack on the institution of public education.)  

This year LePage has proposed to eliminate the funding formula that is used to determine state school subsidies. Specifically, he wants to eliminate funding for 'System Administration'. This pays for school superintendents and school boards. Wouldn't you say this very conveniently fits into his plan? Without these leadership entities, public schools will not only lose local leadership, but protection from political harm. The next step will be to weaken the teacher union, as has been done in other parts of the country. These actions so very conveniently follow the same paths as in other parts of the country where the attack on public education is further along in its path of destruction.

 

     Let's acknowledge that education is expensive and costs have increased over the years. What has not increased in cost? Food - increased.  Shelter - increased.  Utilities - increased. Etc. The cost of living has increased so it is reasonable that the cost of education will also increase along with all other costs. To attack education because it is costly, is disingenuous. The attack is meant to destroy public education. That would truly be a major blow to our society.

     Next up....president and federal education appointees who use money and political power to support politicians who are not friends of public education. Politicians who support big business.