The state of education in our country.

As many of you know, Brandon and I desperately want to move back home (to Oregon) this summer. However, the current economic downturn is making this a little more difficult than we would have liked. He's been interviewing at a couple of places, and one of them sounds pretty promising ... which is great news! In all of the decision making and back and forths over the last few months, I always thought he might have a hard time getting a job because of the recession, but figured it would be pretty easy for me ... I'm a teacher. There is a teacher SHORTAGE, so of course I'll get a job, right? Wrong.

I found out today from the principal of my old elementary school (I don't know her) that Oregon's social services and education budgets got cut by THIRTY percent for next year! I knew it was bad and have found out that a lot of districts are not hiring until SUMMER ... but I didn't know it was that bad! I thought the almost 6% cut in Utah was bad! It's 5.something% ...just can't remember the exact figures.

Anyway, I'm feeling more than a little discouraged, and I'm incredibly sad to hear that Oregon cut their budget by 30%. What does that say to people? Yes, there is an immediate need to cut costs ... but does it really need to be that drastic? Already students don't have enough money at their schools and now they are taking 30% of that?! Teachers will teach despite the cuts in their salaries ... despite the fact that they will have to purchase more supplies with their own money ... and despite the fact that the state will use that money to fund other programs that are not as important. Perhaps I am a little bias because I am a teacher, but education for our kids is the only thing that is going to bring progress in the future. How can you expect us, as a society, to move forward if we are not investing now? Utah's legislatures justified the 13% they originally wanted to cut by saying that we don't provide anything to the economy. This comment enraged me because without education, there would be no economy. No democracy. No stimulus. No government. Nothing.

There is a quote by Pearl S. Buck that pretty much sums up the way states are handling their education budgets ... "If our American way of life fails the chilld, it fails us all."