So with the 2.25% SSA for FY17, our average increase over the past 7 years is 1.93% And people wonder why schools have to make cuts…(1/2)

Mar 22

Same 7 yrs over $600 million business tax credits/cuts. “Show me where you choose to spend your money, I’ll show you your priorities”(2/2)

Let me write that again: “Show me where you choose to spend your money, I’ll show you your priorities.”

As an Iowa teacher (see what I did there??), I’ve grown weary of hearing about how our elected officials fall over themselves to tell us how “there’s no money” and “we have to live within out means”.

My school has done just that. We’ve frozen spending, we’ve worked hard to make more with less, we’ve cut to the bone, and we are to the point where the district that I’ve started with is in the beginning stages of reorganizing (merging) with a neighboring district.  We’ve lived within our means and we are told to do it again.

Mar 23 RepJorgenson thinks it’s a problem that most of school district’s costs comes from salaries. How does he think kids get taught? #iaedfuture
These are the kinds of things that our elected officials are saying about teachers. That it’s a problem most of the district costs come from paying us.  These are the same people who’ve giving hundreds of millions in tax breaks, reducing our state revenue  to the point where they can then say “you have to live within your means”.
It’s time we as teachers, Democrat, Republican, Independent, Green, or Wack-a-Doodle, we have to start getting ticked at this constant stream of compost coming for our elected officials. It’s not just Iowa where this is taking place. Ohio, Kansas, Wisconsin, and others are seeing their elected officials not give two rips about what damage they are doing to their state educational system, giving tax breaks, cutting funding, starving a public system that doesn’t deserve this.
I’ve said this before: we have to keep applying pressure to our elected officials. Call them, write them, visit them, tell them that ALL our children deserve a classroom that’s not over crowded, one that’s not full of out-dated text books, or technology that is failing.  Get mad, get involved, get yourself being an activist for your profession and your students.
It seems at this point, those who claim to be education friendly, they may not be as much. We have a great strength and power in our ranks. We have to start using this to create the change that we want, electing people who will work for the good of American education.
If we aren’t able to do that, who will?
And if you don’t know angry eyebrows, spend a minute to watch this and you’ll understand! 🙂