Stand Up for Education, Stand Up for Teachers

Last night I went to the Callanan Middle School band concert. It, like all of the others I have attended over the last few years, made me marvel about the difference a good teacher can make. While I know better, it would be easy to believe Dana Andrews employs magical powers to transform these gangly, disorganized and often unfocused adolescents into musicians. I know many of the kids who were up on that stage and like them very much – one in particular. In fact, it is my familiarity with these kids that makes me appreciate Mr. Andrews all the more. In the hours and days he spends with his students, he teaches more than music. He weaves respect and discipline into the lessons, and leads theses hormone raging beings down a path of discovery that ends in a belief in themselves.

Mr. Andrews and his colleagues in classrooms across our District do something remarkable. They teach and, in doing so, they mold the future for thousands of students. Due to budget cuts, it is likely there will be 300 less teachers in Des Moines next year. This will mean fewer band performances and math competitions. More important, there will be fewer individual interactions between teacher and student. Many of the teachers will find other jobs, but how many magical, life transforming connections will be lost for the students they leave behind? Over-crowded classrooms and pared back curriculums will have a monetary and social impact that we cannot calculate.

During a Facebook discussion on Monday about the likely loss of teachers in Des Moines Public Schools next year, one of those commenting said something fuzzy about it being time we stop “throwing” money at schools until parents get more involved in raising their children. She said personal responsibility starts at home and went on about turning off the TV, silencing cell phones and reading books to kids. OK, American kids do watch too much TV and wonderful things happen when adults read to children, but could she really think this alone would balance the probable loss of more than 300 teachers in our schools next Fall? I hope she wasn’t serious.

My Facebook friend is a good person who volunteers her time and does good work for the community. And, adults need to play a role in helping children reach their potential. However, the funding crisis faced in Iowa schools will not be solved by a lecture on the importance of personal responsibility. Class size will go up, some subjects will be reduced or eliminated, and learning will suffer next year unless something is done.

After the concert, many of the parents gathered in the Callanan lunchroom to discuss what could be done to protect music, art and classroom teachers in these tough economic times. I heard frustration and anxiety in their voices. If you share this concern, I ask that you join us in doing something about it. Des Moines Schools Superintendent Nancy Sebring and the School Board face some terrible decisions. They should not make these without hearing from you. It is equally important for you to contact Governor Culver and members of the General Assembly. The most likely place to find dollars to fill the budget shortfall is at the state level. Without new money, the District has to decide where and, ultimately, which teachers to cut.

Please join us in letting school and state officials know how important teachers are to the education equation. The next School Board meeting is Tuesday, March 9 at 6:00 p.m. Attend, if you can. Watch the meeting on cable channel 12, if you cannot. Contact the officials below to tell them how you feel.

Contact Information
For a list school board members and their contact information click here.
To contact Des Moines School officials click here.
For a list of Iowa House members and Iowa Senators click here.
To contact Governor Chet Culver click here.

More Information
For a link to Des Moines Public Schools Board agenda that includes the proposed budget cuts click here.
Here is a list of the positions being cut at each Des Moines school

This entry was first published as a Des Moines Register blog entry.

Culver Calls Iowa Resilient, but Fails to Prescribe Remedy to Make State Stronger

Iowa faces a tough, some would say unprecedented, budget situation. For years Iowa’s leaders have avoided making many of the tough decisions Iowa faces. State government is long overdue for a top-to-bottom restructuring and the current budget crunch exposes Iowa’s many weaknesses. Governor Chet Culver’s 2010 Condition of the State Address given today touched on this all too briefly.

Governor Culver proclaimed the condition of Iowa to be resilient. Like a hospital patient, it can be said the state is resilient, but saying this is hardly analogous to laying out the budgetary and policy triage needed to heal a state lying in critical condition. The Governor failed to demonstrate to members of the General Assembly and the people of Iowa that he had a battle plan to take Iowa from critical to stable to healthy and thriving.

Culver missed the opportunity to be a leader in a Capitol in serious need of one, opting instead to play the role of cheerleader. Typically, a Condition of the State Address is part self indulgent back slapping, part political posturing, part agenda setting and part inspirational. While it is likely the Governor’s figurative back is still warm from the first piece, he failed to deliver on all of the others.

The current budget shortfall provides Culver and legislators a choice. They can patch together a budget to see the State through this tough period, or they can seize this as an opportunity to restructure government and a build a new stronger foundation to face the future. Restructuring means drastically changing the way Iowa funds and manages services. To start such a process, Culver would have had to lay out a vision for this new government configuration and inspire legislators to join with him to build it. He decided instead to recite his accomplishments and to praise Iowa for its resilience – Culver left writing the prescription for healing Iowa for later, or worse, to somebody else.

This entry was first published as a Des Moines Register blog entry.