For nicely over a century, the public-school system in Florida has efficiently ready hundreds of thousands of scholars for post-secondary training, entry degree jobs, navy careers, skilled careers, and maturity. This nice establishment is a cornerstone for our democracy and the doorway of alternative for each baby and household. Nonetheless, I’ve grown more-and-more involved for the way forward for our public colleges as a battle is being waged in opposition to it on two fronts.
On the primary entrance, public faculty {dollars} are being syphoned away and used to increase wealth and energy for choose people and personal pursuits.
Over the previous three years alone, laws has been handed increasing personal faculty vouchers throughout the state at an alarming fee. Knowledge launched just lately by the Florida Division of Training confirms that the voucher program has now enrolled over 165,000 college students who attend personal colleges all through the State of Florida costing taxpayers $1.5 billion.
In Leon County alone, that equates to roughly 2,000 college students at a value of over $16 million. Florida’s voucher program is now the fifth largest faculty district in the complete state.
On a second entrance, some elected leaders are waging a destructive propaganda battle in opposition to our public-school system that’s merely unfaithful.
The governor is main the cost by utilizing his political platform to create a divisive, confrontational, and false narrative in regards to the precise happenings in our colleges on the expense of faculty board members, faculty directors, and worst of all, our academics.
That is being achieved to drive college students and households away by casting doubt, creating concern, and inserting a wedge between dad and mom and our public colleges primarily based upon a false rhetoric.
Time and time once more, the governor has gone on document with unsubstantiated tales about what colleges are selling and what academics are educating in lecture rooms that has not been backed up with any supporting proof.
Make no mistake about it, the aspersions directed at public colleges is accelerating the speed by which the state training system turns into utterly privatized. Over a billion {dollars}, which in any other case would go to public colleges, are actually being siphoned off to personal colleges, to do no matter they need with zero accountability for scholar achievement, instructor and administrator certification necessities, or faculty grades.
Let’s be clear, this isn’t nearly cash — it’s in regards to the sanctity of an establishment that has benefited our society past measure. It’s in regards to the alternative for each baby to achieve a free public training.
John F. Kennedy as soon as mentioned, “the longer term promise of any nation might be instantly measured by the current prospects of its youth.” After we create two separate faculty techniques, one for the privileged and one for everybody else, we marginalize much more college students with disabilities and people who reside in poverty.
At this pivotal second in Florida’s training system, what can we do? The way in which I see it, we now have two selections. One, we keep silent and permit the privatization of the public-school system to proceed so the rich grow to be wealthier, our colleges grow to be extra segregated, and the beliefs that the public-school system represents is totally denigrated; Or we come collectively, push again, and communicate up in opposition to the dismantling of the public-school system.
I’m a product of Leon County Faculties, have labored in our college system for 35 years, and now proudly function superintendent. I cannot stand by and watch one thing I deeply look after be torn aside by those that are simply hungry for energy and political achieve.
Please be part of me by voting for people who help our public colleges and by contacting our present elected officers in state authorities and letting them know that you simply additionally stand for the sanctity of our public-school system and all it has achieved over the past three centuries to teach, uplift, and help all our kids, giving them an equal alternative for a profitable future.
Rocky Hanna is superintendent of Leon County Faculties.
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