School Levy and Bond Measures Fail to Pass Nationwide

[MineralMan]

Schools need operating money and money for improvements in physical facilities. In most areas, voters must approve these levies and bonds. Increasingly, such levies and bonding measures frequently fail to get the votes needed. This has led schools to actually cut programs and some districts have had to move to four-day schedules and cancel entire programs. You can see some of these stories in Google News searches like these:


http://www.google.com/search?q=school+levy+fails&hl=en&safe=off&tbs=nws:1&ei=1DBtTPb9JNKmngfU1cXYCA&start=0&sa=N
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&safe=off&tbs=nws:1&q=school+bond+election+&aq=f&aqi=&aql=&oq=&gs_rfai=

If this trend continues, simply proposing that the solution for our schools is more money isn't going to be productive. So, what's next? If the money's not there, what do schools do? How do we convince people to fund the schools? More such elections will be coming up in November. What will be their fate?

[HillbillyBob]

1. Kids do not need school they need training to go into work houses

wtf?

[Brickbat]

2. In Minnesota, I would like to see the school funding changed from the way it is now. Where I live,

we are hurt by the fact that second homes and recreational properties are not included in levies. The biggest landholder in my county is the federal government (I think -- and if it's not, it's the state). Our demographic is older and retired, which doesn't always support levies. We have a lot of strikes against us.

We are going to a four-day week this year and I'm furious.

[MineralMan]

6. I've been hearing about Minnesota districts going to a four-day

week all week on the radio. Such a move causes enormous problems for parents who work, and can't be good for the educational process, either. I believe that I heard that North Branch is going to have to do this.

[Brickbat]

7. It's a nightmare.

The days are longer, which is hard on the younger kids, and the disruption to child-care and parents who work outside the home is big. Also, as a parent who works at home, I've just had 20 percent of my work week taken away. Not that I expect the school to be a day care so I can work, but it's a big change for me -- and I'm in a position to be flexible.

The biggest part that made me angry is that this was essentially a referendum on salaries for bus drivers and some other support staff. Their paychecks have now been cut by 20 percent, and I think that's bullshit.

[Old Codger]

11. Here In Glendale

Oregon, we are going into a second year of four day weeks, they are cutting teachers again... BUT they will not cut back their sports programs, they still spend money watering and mowing the football and baseball fields. Their reasoning is that the sports is what keeps the kids in school and they refuse to listen to anyone who disagrees with that philosophy.

[Brickbat]

13. In my district, they sold the four-day week as being the only change to the year. No teachers were

cut, all programs stayed intact, sports wasn't touched at all. However, our bus drivers had their pay cut by 20 percent; gas and bus maintenance made up some of the other savings, and there was savings from not heating the buildings one day a week.

If this comes up next year that more cuts have to be made, I will agitate for higher sports fees and even a bus fee.

[Jokerman]

3. I think the "mixed results" headline is more accurate.

We've managed to pass about half of the referendums in our area, including one that passed with 86% of the vote. Unfortunately the districts in the worst financial shape tend to be the ones that fail. People who are struggling to pay their bills are the least likely to be able to absorb even a small tax increase.

The only way I see to fix this is to disconnect school funding from property values.

IMHO we still divert WAY too much money into athletic facilities and programs. I have nothing against school athletics but when the cuts have to be made, academics should always be a higher priority than athletics.

[MineralMan]

5. True. Results are mixed. But, any school levy failure is

a real problem for the district involved. In Minnesota, state funding has been frozen, and there is talk of cuts from the state as well. The problem isn't new, but it's having more impact than usual right now.

The problem exists, so the question is what can be done to turn it around. Not a few years from now, but right now. I don't have an answer for the question, which is why I'm posing it here.

I don't see school funding being separated from property taxes in many places. The tradition of property owners funding the schools in their district is one of long standing, and I don't think there will be much support for changing it.

Some questions that need to be answered include: Why are people voting these things down? Is it because of insecurity about jobs, etc? Is it a sense among the voters that the schools aren't doing their job? Is it a silent call for restructuring of the educational system? Before we can fix it, we have to understand it.

[Gaedel]

9. Because they can

"Some questions that need to be answered include: Why are people voting these things down? Is it because of insecurity about jobs, etc? Is it a sense among the voters that the schools aren't doing their job? Is it a silent call for restructuring of the educational system? Before we can fix it, we have to understand it."



In localities where millage increases are subject to popular vote, such millage increases or bond issuance (mostly for schools) is the only time the populace gets to vote on a tax increase. If people feel "overtaxed" they will vote "NO" every time.

[Jokerman]

15. This problem has been years in the making.

Conservatives had no problem with public schools when they were segregated and allowed to push the christian religion. Most of them won't come right out and say the want segregated schools but they will gladly tell you that "taking god out of the public schools" was the beginning of the downfall.

First, they fled to exclusive suburbs and tried their best to starve the urban schools to death. As the feds stepped in to help poor schools and the suburbs became less exclusive, they eventually turned on public schools all together.

After years of being bombarded with the conservative talking points "taxes are too high" and "public schools have failed" getting voluntary financial support is not an easy thing.

I personally think that placing school funding directly in the hands of the voters is just another strategy designed to destroy public education. Schools should get a set amount per pupil that is not dependant on the local economy or the unreliable local referendums.

I didn't get to vote in a referendum on the military budget or the bank bail-out, why should schools be required to clear such a hurdle?

[Brickbat]

16. TOTALLY agree.

Well said about voting on the military budget.

[Yupster]

17. We elect a congress to vote on a budget for us

and this year, they aren't even attempting to vote on a budget for the first time in quite a few years.

[One_Life_To_Give]

4. Not surprising in the current economy

When you don't have a job. Are afraid of loosing your job and don't know where you would find another. THe you are not inclined to vote to raise your expenses via taxes no matter how noble the cause.

[JNelson6563]

8. This is very troubling

and it clearly demonstrates where our nation's priorities are. Look at military spending and then education. I guess they figure you don't need much skoolin' to be a consumer.

Another good attempt at kicking off a discussion, I hope this one goes better.

Julie

[MadHound]

10. First, some laws regarding these bond issues need to be changed

Virtually every school district requires some sort of super majority for school bonds to pass. These super majorities generally range from sixty to sixty seven percent. Thus, a school bond can, and often is, held back by a minority of voters. We need to make school bond issues pass on a simple majority.

Second of all, we need to stop putting some school funding issues up before a vote of the people. Other municipal services don't have to go to a vote in order to be enacted, why should school districts have to follow this procedure?

Finally, the federal government itself needs to devote more money to education. Several communities, most notably urban and rural, simply don't have the tax base to support their school in an adequate manner. This is where the federal and/or state government needs to step in with funds. The federal government also needs to start investing in education in order to insure that all schools are fully funded, and that teachers are paid what they are worth.

As has been said, and proven, time and again, money is the answer to our schools' problems. You can try all the band aid solutions you want, but all they will do is, at best, delay the problem. They won't fix it for the long run, and in some cases they make matter worse. If you want a high quality education system in this country, you've got to pay for it.

[MineralMan]

12. Changing laws is a long-term thing. It's even harder than getting

the super majorities needed to pass bonding issues and levies. I think it's a good idea, but it will not happen on a schedule fast enough to correct the immediate problems. They will only get worse.

You say that it's been proven that money is the answer. But, apparently the word has not gotten out to the voters very well. They don't seem convinced of that. How do we convince them?

For school districts that are forced to make drastic cuts already, long-term answers don't get it. They need solutions right now.

[MadHound]

14. So we throw up our hands in despair and continue to rely on band aid fixes?

Look, I agree that schools are in desperate shape right now. But we can't continue to play political football with them, having them subjected to more tests, or unleash unlimited charter schools on the public.

So the answer is that we need to change the laws. Yes, sometimes that's a long slow process. Other times, it isn't. It depends on the need and the issue. Given that a lot of people are tired of having school bonds fail with fifty eight percent voting for it, I think that if you put the proposition before a vote of the people, it would pass.

But in the meantime, Congress and the White House could show some leadership on this. Twenty six billion is a step, a small step, but they can do more. They can stop the assault on public education, they can make that twenty six billion into a hundred and make federal funding of schools a reality.

We no longer have time for band aids and half measures. Teachers and educators have been screaming about the money issue for forty, fifty years now, and nothing has gotten done. Instead we've tried to fix the system with band aids and do school funding on the cheap. Unless schools are fully funded, soon, they will collapse, some already are. We are simply out of time to continue to fiddle fart around, it is that simple. So either people and parties need to start stepping up to the plate, doing the hard work that is needed to save our schools, or kiss them good bye. It is that desperate, and that simple.

[JuniperLea]

18. So, your answer is we continue to let kids fall through the cracks...

Skip anything else that might help while the long, rocky road of legislation is walked at a snail's pace?

[MadHound]

20. And what, out of what is currently being proposed, would help?

More standardized testing? Merit based pay? Employing TFA graduates instead of real teachers? Turning our school system over to charter schools?

Which of these proposals would actually improve things? Education professionals and experts have stated and shown that none of these band aids would work, and in fact could easily make things worse.

The fact of the matter is that sooner or later we're going to have to grab the bull by the horns and make the big push for full funding of schools. We have been putting off this because too many whiners kept saying it was too hard to do, so we've tried band aid after band aid, and the only thing that has happened is that our education system has gotten worse.

So rather continue to put it off, don't you think it's time me made the effort to fully fund schools? Or are you one of those whiners who thinks it is too hard and we need to continue with the band aids, despite the harm they are doing to our school system and our country?

Geez, talk about defeatist.

[JuniperLea]

23. "out of what is currently being proposed"

I'm not talking about "out of what is currently being proposed"... clearly that isn't working, or there wouldn't be an issue, now would there?

I'm asking, very simply, what can be done NOW... Yes things need to change... Yes "bull by the horn"... yes we've tried a lot of band-aids that don't work.

Please, read slowly... this isn't difficult...

What can we do D I F F E R E N T L Y , R I G H T N O W , to help the children at risk R I G H T N O W?

So many here claim to be professional educators, but clearly suffer from a lack of reading comprehension as well as creative thinking skills... two areas which imho are crucial items to all professional educators. I find this highly distressing.

[MineralMan]

25. You're looking at it from one perspective only. And there's the

problem. You can push all you like, from your position, but there are more people pushing back every year. Who do you suppose is going to win that pushing match?

No, it's not nearly as simple as you suggest. You can't just demand that people who vote do what you want. You must show them that what you're asking for will fix the current failures and provide education that works. Even you say, that "the only thing that has happened is that our education system has gotten worse." The problem is that there's no information about how, exactly, more money is going to make that system better. It's just a claim. Now, I think it's very likely that a lot more money will make things better, but I'm not the one you have to convince.

I think the problem is that the education system is not doing a very good job of explaining the problem and how whatever the proposed solutions are going to fix that problem. From the things I've heard used to promote additional levies, the main argument is a negative one. "Either we get this money, or the education system will fail." Well, in a lot of people's minds, it already has, despite their voting for budget increases multiple times. Nobody's explaining to the people who are going to the voting booth just exactly how this money is going to fix the schools. And they're saying, "No. Not now. Not until you explain the benefits. Not until you show us exactly what you plan to do to correct what has been wrong for such a long time." Unless that happens, these measures will not only continue to fail, but the failure rate will increase.

In some ways, it's like a kid threatening to hold his breath until his face turns blue unless you buy him that toy on the shelf. You know the kid's going to breathe, so you blow off the threat and march him out of the store. You can threaten all you like, but the voting public knowns that your threatening and is increasingly less willing to just go along.

I think a new approach is needed in this. Yes, the money's desperately needed, and the schools deserve that money. So, how do you get voters to say "Yes?" That's the question.

[MineralMan]

24. Sounds easy, doesn't it? But, what if your all or nothing plan

doesn't work? Changing the laws pretty much just shifts the burden from one set of taxpayers to another, even though they're all the same people. It's easy to say change it or kiss the schools goodbye. That's not a solution. It's an ultimatum, and those never work. The thing is that, no matter how school funding is handled, people have to support it. And there's the problem. People seem less and less willing to support a system that doesn't produce the results that are expected.

I think that what people are saying with these denials of more funding is that they want to see some results. I know that you think the only way to do that is to spend more money, but you're hearing people say, "We've been doing that for a long time, and the results still suck." At the bottom line of all this is that taxpayers fund the schools. One way or another, they're not happy about the results they're getting. It doesn't matter whether they know why or not. They're just unhappy with it and are saying, "Sorry, no. Figure out what you want to do, do it, then show us some positive results. Then come and ask us for money for what works."

I'm not saying they're right. I'm saying that that's what they're saying. So, how do you respond to that? There's the real issue here. Simply demanding more isn't necessarily going to bring the results you want. It's just not. So, what's the next step needed to convince them to open their wallets again. Convince.

[JuniperLea]

19. And what do we do for the kids who are slipping through the cracks...

Today? Next week... next month? It could take years to make legislative change happen. Meanwhile, Johnny can't recognize a book let alone read it.

[MadHound]

21. I can here the whining now.

It's too haaaaarrrrddd. It can't be done right now.

Geez, if you never make the attempt, nothing will ever change.

[MineralMan]

26. It's not a one-way street. That's part of the problem.

You're demanding, but not explaining. There has been precious little explaining. The voters say, "Why?" The educators say, "You'd better, or else."

That trick never works. Time to start educating the voting public. Demands lead to resistance. Requests, accompanied by clear explanations of exactly how the request will help solve the problem, get results. Not much of that going on.

Now, I've never voted against a single school funding measure. Not even once. I know that the money is needed. I vote for it. I'm not the one you need to convince. But the ones who do need convincing are now a large enough group to block these measures. And they're saying "No." It's time to start talking to them, explaining what and why and how. Unless that happens, the No votes are going to increase.

[MineralMan]

27. But can you "hear" the whining? Are you listening to it?

What's your answer to those complaints? What are you communicating to those who are complaining? From what I've seen, it's not what they need to hear to change their minds. Trust me, in a battle between educators and voters, the educators are going to lose. This cannot be a battle. If it is, you'll lose every time. It has to be something else. It has to be "Here's what we need. Here's exactly why. Here's how it will solve this particular problem. Here's what we're willing to change to help this solution work."

"Give us the money, or else..." will get you the or else option, every time. Basic psychology.

[Xolodno]

22. If school funding is connected to...

...property taxes, then they got hit hard.

When homes devalued, the amount of money they received from higher priced homes went with it. Then you add that many homes are simply vacant....plus many homes are selling for way less than they were before the bubble.

Where I live, there is a brand new school...completely boarded up. When they money went, so did the money to staff it. On top of it, with the foreclosures, so did all the families that could utilize it.

[MineralMan]

28. Those are the cold (pun intended) hard facts.

We had several school closures here in the Twin Cities. There was no option, given the budget shortfalls. Right now, demanding more money for schools is a losing proposition. There isn't any. Time to rethink and retrench. I suggest it start with inter-mural sports and other non-academic programs. Put them all on suspension until funding is available and retrench to a focus on academics. Shift the coaches into the classrooms, if they have the credentials for it, and teach the kids academic subjects. If the coaches don't like it, show them the door. Teach children the essential stuff they need to learn and forgo the rest. That will accomplish a number of things.

If you can't afford to bus the kids, don't bus them. Let their parents bring them to school or let them walk. We have kids here who get bussed less than half a mile to their school. Let 'em walk it. Call it Physical Education. Get non-working parents to serve as escorts for these walks to school.

The folks who voted against the bond measures will scream bloody murder, but just let them scream. They're the ones who caused the problem in the first place. Trust me... the athletic supporters (pun intended again) voted No almost across the board.

Retrench. Renew. Then, when things are stabilized, re-institute what can be funded. What isn't funded doesn't start back up, but essential instruction goes on.