People protesting the state of education in California. Finally. Is anyone surprised the California school system is being decimated now? With immigration, welfare, corrections, and government spending completely haywire, I don’t know how this could come as a surprise to anyone. It’s tragic, it’s unacceptable, it’s despicable… but surprising it aint.
Photo: SacBee.com
can someone explain to me how california universities and state schools are funded for operation?
I agree Joe: it is definitely not surprising. Only surprising thing is why it took people so flippin’ long to actually get mad about it. Joe don’t you think it’s amazing that he cost of both education and health care will soon be out of the reach of most Americans? Those are the two most important things besides food and shelter and yet most people will soon not have access to them. The whole country is broken.
You’re so right, Mark. As a public education advocate and classroom volunteer at an inner city elementary school, I have seen first-hand what problems are crippling the public education system. It’s the parents, plain and simple. Right now, the huge national and state focus is blaming the teachers and their unions. I’m no huge fan of unions and I belive in firing people for cause who don’t do a good job; however, this trend of ‘blame the teachers’ is off-base. First of all, it’s so much easier for parents to blame the teacher rather than looking in the mirror. Politicians blame the teacher because they know that there are wayyyyyy more parents than teachers. You don’t want to piss-off the majority.
I have seen numerous children come to school tired (no bedtime set), hungry (mom doesn’t bother to make lunch or breakfast), without their homework completed, and with absolutely no social skills regarding respect for others or learning. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see that the cards are stacked against teachers and the kids because so much of the burden of education starts at home. If the kid doesn’t do their homework, can’t concentrate because they’re exhausted and hungry, and can’t sit still and listen because they don’t know how to repsect boundaries, well, what is a teacher to do when they have 34 other kids to deal with – many of whom have the same problems?
I think the problems with public schools today stem from taking on the responsibilities that should lie squarely on the shoulders of parents. Parents then come to expect the schools to do everything for them. Removing parental responsibility removes the parent’s power to become more involved in the activities of daily living of their children. Out of sight, out of mind. I think schools need to step back from trying to do all things for all people. It is feasable in this very difficult economic time. I think raising the bar for parents is what the schools need to do. Call parents out when they don’t care for their children. I would even like to see those that are on some sort of public assistance have it tied to whether or not their child is truant, and whether or not their homework is completed, etc. I know that is a pipe dream, but it would be nice if we could raise the bar for parents. If we did, I am certain many would step up to the plate and do what they need to do. So many are just comfortable letting the school take care of things so they fall into that cycle. Yes, there are those kids whose parents do drugs and don’t care. The schools generally know who these kids are and that’s where they should intervene. The schools first job is to educate – they have taken on too many roles – social worker, pychologist, nurse, referee, meal provider, etc. Of course it is difficult for schools to cover all of the outside roles they’re currently expected to fill when they only get money to educate.
Just my 2 cents from someone who has been in the trenches, watching
ok, here are my two cents. the government of the U.S. long ago said that at the age of 18 you are an adult and free to make your own decisions. i believe (and i may be wrong) that even if you turn 18 and are still in high school, you could theoretically drop out and not be forced to go back. these first few sentences are basically stated to prove that going to college is a choice. yes, it does help, but only helps certain individuals. college isn’t for everyone. college isn’t a right either. college is a priviledge. also, public colleges are publicly funded. this leads me to the students who attend college and how their education is paid. one stipulation i would like to make is i don’t believe housing, food and entertainment are considered “college expenses”. all of these would need to be born if the student attended college or worked and had to pay rent, etc.
1. Full Scholarship – This student basically gets a free education. paid in full by the tax payers, bonds, other students tuition, athletic program incomes, etc.
2. Student Loans – The student isn’t awarded a full scholarship (there could be none or a partial scholarship) so therefore the education is based on a “payback” method. we give you the education now, you pay us back over time. incidentally, that is how my wife was educated and now we are stuck with $50 a month payments for the rest of our lives. thank you UC davis and thank god she only was there for two years and was smart enough to go to a community college to get the undergrad classes done.
these students who are protesting, in my humble opinion, are protesting for no reason. i am sorry they have to pay more for their education. but first and foremost it is their education, secondly, costs are going up (next time they should thank the teachers’ union for striking and wanting more pay), third the state (which primarily funds the colleges) is in debt up to its eyeballs and cuts have to go somewhere. i am sorry they are going to education. i wish they wouldn’t, but someone tell me why they shouldn’t bear some of the burden.
another point i would like to make is these are the publicly elected officials that we AND they (since they are all of voting age) put in office. if they disagree with their publicly elected officials’ decisions, then vote them out.
lastly, i too like rhonda volunteer at a school. i volunteer at a continuation school. and i agree that the parents are to blame for a lot (not all, but a lot) of the problems. the students i work with are all good people. but most (again, not all) come from a low-income environment. generally their parents aren’t really beacons of light and really aren’t great role models. i really feel bad for these students. basically a lot of the reasons they are in a continuation school is laziness. but that comes from home. no one pushes them and kicks their butts in gear. why? because generally the parents are lazy too or even just not their because they are working (some of them multiple jobs).
the process of education is not primarily the schools’, it is a home and community job. if the home isn’t reinforcing the education, then the student suffers. if the community doesn’t do their part or provides them vices that take away from their education, then that also affects how the students turn out. so what happens? since colleges need to not lose money and need enrollment, then the standard of education is lowered to get more students in. a vicious cycle is created. now students, who aren’t educated to the level they should be, are now allowed into colleges.
just my two cents…
sorry susie, i meant you when i said “like rhonda”. extreme apologies!!!!!
Joesac – what we witnessed yesterday in terms of the protestors is a new political movement which could end up rivaling the “tea party”. People are tired of the phony reform that Arnold rammed down our throats and then we ended up not getting one thin dime of that federal money. The bottom line is this – the people in education who are advocating this type of reform is just another example of the rich getting richer while working families are being laid off, losing their homes, health care and their livelihoods. The wealthiest Californians, including the oil companies, insurance companies and countless other corporations and big property owners are not paying their fair share of taxes while the rest of us are suffering. Many of the leaders, from both sides of the fence are out of touch. I have not had a pay raise in several years and now due to the furloughs, my salary is the same before I was promoted. It is a joke that the former Speaker of the Assembly gave those huge pay raises to those Capitol Staffers when the rest of us are losing our livelihoods. People want PUBLIC education, not some thinly disguised phony bunch of crap like Arnold and some of the Republicrats lied to us about.
Hey if the wealthy were ALSO getting poorer like the rest of us, I’d have no beef, but as Dr. Frederick Price stated in one of his sermons I happened to catch a few months ago: “It’s not like the money is gone. It’s just changed hands. And it isn’t in YOUR hands.” Hello. That made me stop and think…. yeah… the money is the money…. it’s just changed hands… and no one I know has any of it…. so where the $#@% is it? You tell me. Show me the money.
Oh wait, here it is:
http://www.allheadlinenews.com/articles/7017965463
Our priorities are all screwed up. Plain and simple. There is no shared sacrifice. United we stand…
And if we don’t have enough problems, we have to worry about weasels like this:
http://www.sacbee.com/2010/03/05/2584336/n-california-gas-pump-skimming.html
first off, the “Rich” that posted wasn’t me. secondly, since when is it a crime to be wealthy? i thought it was every americans right TO be wealthy. if you don’t like what the politicians are doing, then vote them out. as for arnold, the same thing can be said about arnold that people like to say about KJ. except for the fact that the governor of california actually has powers, the legislature holds the purse strings. also, for all of you who blame the legislature and the governor, let me put this to you. in the last few years we passed prop 1 (high speed rail) and prop 2 (animal cruelty). most experts feel the high speed rail won’t be ready for at least 20 years. also, prop 2 forces animal farms (such as chicken ranchers) to give enough room for the chickens to spread their wings (by the way chickens can’t fly) before we cut their heads off. i don’t bring these issues up to debate the propositions themselves. i bring them up to show how us, the voters, can strap the hands of the legislature when it comes to spending. by us approving both propositions we have allocated billions of dollars that COULD HAVE GONE to the general fund or education or some other use. now we have forced them to use money in their budget, creating a larger deficit, if education was such a priority, then why aren’t propositions and other measures taken to ensure money is available? it seems to me, and this is no revelation, that we are only interested in the “flavor of the day”. a few years ago it was “oh god we need a high speed rail, it will solve all of our problems”. now it is “oh we need education, we can’t cut that”. well when state revenues are down because people are walking away from their mortgages, and property taxes aren’t what they use to be, and people aren’t working, therefore income taxes are down and sales taxes just aren’t there because people aren’t buying like they use to because they don’t have jobs, well we find ourselves in quite a pickle.
based upon prior legislation and propositions, the legislature is mandated to spend money on things. for instance, each of the propositions i referenced above didn’t have a “well the state doesn’t have any money so we won’t fund these propositions this year” clause. i am not a government major, and i hope someone will correct me if there is a law on the books that allows the government to not fund things in this instance. but i don’t remember reading any clauses like that in the wording of the propositions.
so for all of you protestors, how many of you voted yes on props 1 and 2?
We can’t continuously put a band-aid on a fracture. Yes, California is broke…. and broken.
I can’t agree it’s the parents plain and simple. But I do agree parents should be held responsible and accountable to feed, cloth, nurture, send their children to school, see to it their children are at school, see to it they are doing their homework, teach them social. learning, life skills, not to be disruptive… I think it’s easier for many to blame someone else rather than looking in the mirror. And even easier to blame the little guy (parents and teachers) instead of the giants standing in the way. Keep them divided and looking at one another as a distraction…and they won’t look for the forest through the trees.
I do believe many parents aren’t blaming the teacher because they know they ARE to blame. Sure, some political figures in the state may be blaming the teachers because quite honestly many could give a damn about the parents. Why blame someone who is voiceless in the matter? If the cries of parents aren’t heard in other aspects why then would California lobbyist and politicians hear if they were complaining it’s the teachers fault ? It has little to do with the parents allegedly screaming out it’s the teachers fault and it has more to do with money. We should follow the money. The squeaky wheel isn’t always getting the grease –those that can pay for it is. Yes, their are more parents than teachers but every rally I’ve attended regarding education had more teachers and faculty members present than parents. If the parents aren’t showing up for parent teacher conferences you can best believe they aren’t showing up to rally to get their voices heard to “blame the teachers”.
Yes, some parents are down right lazy, some are working one and two jobs, some are overwhelmed with so many burdens in these economic difficult times. But in the end when all is said and done, We are all our brothers keeper and it takes a village to raise and corrupt a child.
Mark, you said it best, “hey if the wealthy were ALSO getting poorer like the rest of us, I’d have no beef, but as Dr. Frederick Price stated in one of his sermons I happened to catch a few months ago: “It’s not like the money is gone. It’s just changed hands. And it isn’t in YOUR hands.” Hello.
An example of what I mean by it takes a village to raise and corrupt a child– Marie Osmond’s son didn’t take his life because he believed his mother, father, family didn’t love him…. He felt he had no friends….His pain went beyond his parent’s love. Every individual has a longing for a sense of belonging….to belong to more, a need, want or desire for love and acceptance within and outside of their family….( I know I’m going off subject, and I apologize, but I wanted to add this to my previous post) I know we can’t be there for everyone and we can’t raise, love, educate everyone’s kids but we could do what we can, when we can, if we can, to fill in the gaps.
I’m sorry, I met to also add: I appreciate, acknowledge and give thanks to both Susie and 2112 for filling in the gaps and volunteering at the schools… My comments are not intended to downplay or make light of your efforts, hearts, concern and outreach . I too have sat in classes, volunteered, worked yard duty/ campus supervisor, sat on school buses, went to the school districts with concerns, asked to give a presentation and speak at a local high school ….and I know parents are much to blame and I’ve heard from many of the elementary, middle and high school students who have concerns both with adults at home and by some adults within and outside the schools.
no prob rhonda. i see your point. i used to be totally against the notion that “it takes a village/community…” (i think it was Hillary Clinton who coined that phrase in the early to mid 90s, but maybe someone else said it before her). but the more i work with high school students (mainly jrs and srs.) who are ready to go into the real world, and i hear stories about their home lives, somedays it is hard to take (one student goes to school in the morning, he doesn’t have afternoon classes and no parents to speak of, so he sits at school for a few hours, waits for his girlfriend’s parents to come pick him up, then he goes to work until 10 or 11 that night, only to go home, sleep for a few hours and do it all again the next day). that is really tough to see because he is a good guy. he realizes the mistakes he made to be put in a continuation school, and now he is a senior and you should see the smile he gets when he talks about how he is about to graduate and the hard work he has put in to get to that point. his family life is a mess, but the volunteers who work with these students i think really help out. that is why i am turning (can’t say that i totally agree yet) on my stance. i do believe that at least partially, the community has a responsibility towards these students.
2112- I agree with you. I’ve helped many neighborhood youth. Sometimes just by being someone for them to talk to. I too hear and see their stories and some are simply a product of their environment but when placed in a nurturing environment they adapt and their smile can light up a room. A few years ago I would open my home and give a youth a bed, food, love every now and then (I no longer do so- I found resources where they could get more than my love but get the professional counseling they truly need and love from me on the side) Many have redirected their lives and it’s a real good feeling when I hear from them and see their eyes with a glow and not the reminisce of misery and they are working and no longer in trouble. The truth is, I didn’t just give them love they gave me love in return.. Even with love, not all is a success story (one I took in died 2 yrs after moving on shot to death at 18yrs and another in prison for 3 yrs) But the love and insight I received from the youth is genuine and so precious to me. When I first heard “It takes a village…” I was skeptical. I added the corrupt part after listening to the youth and seeing for myself so many other outside the home influences/ factors. But after reading your post I realize I should have ended with “I’ve heard from many of the elementary, middle and high school students who have concerns– and SUPPORT- both…” But I know for a fact, the volunteers really help out. Love conquers evil, love conquers hate, good triumphs over bad, love can take a child from feelings of worthlessness to feelings of value. Councilmember Pannell and Hammond held a youth roundtable…and many youth from continuation schools were present and their wasn’t a dry eye in the room when many of the youth begin to share their stories. I’m not saying every child can be saved but many are wanting, waiting and willing to be saved. I know it annoys some when I put in scriputres but it’s in my heart to do so, Luke 15:4-7 “What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost until he finds it?” To me the youth are our lost sheep and I rejoice when I find one and can bring them back. Luke 15:8-10 “What woman, having ten silver coins, if she loses one coin, does not light a lamp, sweep the house, and search carefully until she finds it?” To me the youth- who have become commodities for many – are our precious coins and again I rejoice when I can light a lamp and look in the dark, sweep throughout the city, search until I can find our precious coin which was lost and bring them back. I can see hope in their eyes, I can see them wanting to change, to start again…. 2112 I am not a saint – I am a person who has been through the fire and embraced by the love of Jesus. I am blessed with the love and forgiveness of Jesus and when God gives us blessings, love I believe we should use those blessing, love to bless and love others. I don’t help the youth unselfishly- I wish I could say that I did. But I find comfort, love, blessings in doing so. The more I help them it seems the more love I receive. Well, that’s just my 2 cents and it’s written in the spirit of love. Again, thank you for being their to listen to the youth. Whether or not we agree on everything doesn’t really matter to me, the fact you do not turn a blind eye or a deaf ear to the youth means a great deal to me.
sorry I was going to edit my comment down but it’s too late now. I should have just wrote, God is good, God is love and when we extend goodness on to others, when we love others we are blessed with good and love in return from others. I know this to be a fact because I love strangers many that I don’t know personally often times unconditionally and I receive so much love from so many that I don’t know personally. What I put out I get back. I may not have much but I can truthfully say since I began loving the youth of Sacramento and speaking up for the youth I have received so much love from so many people in Sacramento and heck many of them end up speaking up for me. Sorry for my previously long post.
I agree it takes a village!! That is so on point. And the thing is, people just don’t seem to want to help each other. So many people want to be left alone. They just want to get their kids into Stanford and screw everyone else. See, I am not down with that. Never have been. Honestly I don’t comprehend how people can so be selfish. for better or for worse, I have this alarm that goes off inside me every time I am raking in money (which has NOT been a recurring event in my life – ha!) that pesters me with questions such as “Hey what are you doing for OTHER PEOPLE lately big shot!!?” And there’s no shutting that voice up…. unless I cave and appease it.
I’m not saying I’m special. Heck sometimes I think it’s a curse. Thanks Mom! I’m kidding of course. I’d rather be no other way. And I thank my parents for teaching me early on there is SO much MORE to life than MONEY. I’m thankful I am not a slave to it… which segues me to 2112’s question:
This question/observation crosses over into spiritual territory for me, because personally—and this is just me so don’t get bent out of shape—-in my religion we’re grateful just to have food on the table and a roof over our heads. To me and my family that’s how we define success. We don’t view comfort and luxury as “rights,” we view them as blessings. We don’t believe anyone has a “right” to anything on God’s earth. But again, that’s just me and I fully accept and respect other points of view.
I just think this country could use a more “village” like mentality… and I think that’s the common denominator paradigm that binds me with the great folks who come here and express their points of view.
Mark, your mother is a beautiful woman- and the fruit does not fall far from the tree. Your post is beautiful. Oh, and when I read the following sentence I felt chills—-I absolutely agree!!! “We don’t view comfort and luxury as “rights,” we view them as blessings. We don’t believe anyone has a “right” to anything on God’s earth”
It is so nice to be in the village with you!!! Blessings to you and your family
Your comment about how you view wealth from a spiritual perspective is very interesting. I used to live in orange county where people often make wealth their primary objective in life. Spiritually speaking that would be problematic since God would like himself to be everyone’s primary objective.
But back to the article: I think a reason that universities should be invested in is because they lead to a more prosperous economy. The reason that California is so wealthy is because of the investments in higher education in the sixties and fifties. And a reason that states might not invest as much as they should is because their investments often move across the country.
Great comments everybody. After reading through them, I wanted to make it clear that I, too, believe we all need to have a hand in helping take care of the kids. What I want to reiterate, however, is that we must raise the bar for parents. I hear this statement from my friends time and again “If we don’t do it, who will?” I don’t want to abandon anyone or ignore those that need support and help. What I’m simply saying is we should EXPECT MORE from parents rather than to just rescue them before they need rescuing. I believe most parents love their kids unconditionally. I believe that most want what’s best for their kids. I believe that many may not realize that they’re disenfranchised from the nurturing of their offspring; therefore, we need to encourage them to step-up. Give them a chance to do what is right before we pull the rug of responsibility out from under them.
I think as a society, we’ve veered away from personal responsibility and have enabled parents to disconnect from the rigors and responsibilities of raising kids. It’s hard, it’s expensive, it’s often thankless, but it’s a real responsibility that needs to be supported and encouraged, not replaced. Okay, now I’ve given four cents worth
Thanks Rhonda
Amen to that
Susie, I completely agree with you. We should raise the bar, we should expect more from parents!!! Wow, Give a man a fish (do the work for them) he can eat for a day; Teach him how to fish (“EXPECT MORE from parents rather than to just rescue them before they need rescuing) he’ll eat for a lifetime. Wonderful post
I completely agree and AMEN “I think as a society, we’ve veered away from personal responsibility and have enabled parents to disconnect from the rigors and responsibilities of raising kids. It’s hard, it’s expensive, it’s often thankless, but it’s a real responsibility that needs to be supported and encouraged, not replaced.” Susie, I completely respect and appreciate you and all that you do for the youth (tackling the school system…) and the community as a whole (speaking up, your genuine concern and your heart to rally troops together….) You are truly appreciated and I don’t take anything you say lightly I put much weight on ALL that you contribute. Thank you
Thanks, Rhonda…ditto