Metro government fully funded education for the upcoming year -- but it's not enough. Teachers are still dipping into their own pockets to buy school supplies, some schools need to grow to accommodate students flooding in from new housing developments, and many existing schools simply need more resources.
Metro government did the best it could, but it's not enough. The way we fund schools needs to change.
If schools are going to meet their own goals for excellence, they need to control their revenues and the only way they can do that is to have the power to levy taxes.
Most of the money spent on education goes to pay teachers. The amount is dictated by state law. That means the rest of the money -- somewhere in the area of 25 percent -- is left to pay for transportation, buildings, books, computers and virtually everything else it takes to run a school system.
The answer isn't to cut salaries -- we need to attract and keep excellent people in our classrooms. We simply need more money and schools can't get that when their source of funding is already cash strapped. It's also unreasonable to expect Metro officials to make choices between schools and other vital programs such as transit and health care. These programs are important, too.
Giving schools the right to tax would improve accountability. School board members are accountable for the district's success, but they have no control over revenues. Metro officials are responsible for funding, but they have no control over what happens in schools.
Basic management says you can't give someone responsibility for a job without also giving them the authority to carry it out. If the school system can set its own tax rate, it will have both authority and responsibility, which means it also has accountability.
Voters would also gain added responsibility. If the school board sought a tax increase and it was denied, voters would share responsibility for the board's ability to create excellent schools.
Good schools cost money and it's unrealistic to expect our schools to deliver the kind of system we want if we don't give them the power to make it happen.
-- Jim Grinstead
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