Local property-tax-raising-referendum-to-fund-schools crashes and burns

[jinxmchue]

This was posted by someone I know on Facebook in response:

I hope those who voted against the referendum enjoy their days and evenings without concerts, musicals, speech meets and knowledge bowls. I hope they don't complain too much when their child or grandchild's classroom size is so huge that learning cannot be achieved. Other districts who have as many cash strapped citizens as we do supported their school systems. Congratulations.

 


Of course, now the schools will start cutting good things in revenge to teach us dumb schlubs who didn't support a tax hike a lesson and keep the stupid, wasteful stuff.

[njpines]

Good for your district!!  You don't want to get on that horrendous treadmill -- it'll kill you.  We're on it in NJ and that's the reason we have the highest property taxes in the country.  I'm desperately hoping Christie can introduce some sanity into the system! 

[bkg]

haven't even looked at mine. We need a full audit of the union and all districts here in MN.

[jtyangel]

I'm all for funding districts that need it and have shown frugality with the money they get. When a community cries out when cuts have already been made, as they did here in one district, I think they are saying that they are taking umbrage with the particular cuts made which usually aim at the kids getting an education rather then those educating them and the administrators. There is something ridiculous about districts saying they can't provide the same service a district in another area can provide when they charge a property own 6000 a more in property taxes. Something is too bloated if that is the case. As far as large classroom sizes, perhaps it is time for paretns to take a more active role in some of the instruction then. While I think teachers should introduce and give lessons at school, I do believe the parents should be the ones making sure the rote and repetative things get done at home to enforce it. I really don't believe in the dropping them off at school and washing the hands of it thing, but I do believe a lot of instructional time is wasted on non-essential type of things. With very few exception it seems the communities with parents who show an interest and place value on learning at home have kids with the best outcomes academically. No magical amount of money in some communities is going to make up with the essential value that parents can place upon learning and that doesn't come in approval or not of the levy.

[Chris]

Nooooo!  Not the knowledge bowls!

[Celtic Rose]

haven't even looked at mine. We need a full audit of the union and all districts here in MN.

I think every state could probably use a full audit of the union and school districts.  I would be happy to help California out if they asked 

[jinxmchue]

Nooooo!  Not the knowledge bowls!

Hey.  I was in the knowledge bowl.  I was the "B" team, but I was on it.  That being said, yeah, I don't think too many people would weep for its loss.

[jinxmchue]

I bet crap like this won't be cut before concerts, musicals, etc.:

A sixth grade class at Montevideo Middle School launched a solar-powered balloon Monday morning.

Students ran with the 30-foot tube-shaped balloon across the athletic fields to fill it with air.

After tying it off, the students anxiously waited for the sun to work its magic.

As the students watched, their teacher explained what was expected to happen.

"The energy from the sun is warming up the air inside of the balloon because of the black color," says teacher Barbara Palmer.

With a little lift from the class, the balloon was floating hundreds of feet above the students' heads.

"We're learning about renewable resources and solar energy. The sun heated the black balloon and wouldn't let the heat out and the hot air rose, carrying the balloon with it," says Andrew McDaniel, a sixth grader in the class.

After bringing the balloon down, the students had an opportunity to feel the temperature of the air inside the balloon and were shocked to see just how warm it was.

[Chris]

Hey.  I was in the knowledge bowl.  I was the "B" team, but I was on it.  That being said, yeah, I don't think too many people would weep for its loss.

I was too.  It was an excuse to miss class.

[SSG Snuggle Bunny]

I was too.  It was an excuse to miss class.

You were in the Glee Club, weren't you?

[jinxmchue]

I was too.  It was an excuse to miss class.

 

[jinxmchue]

You were in the Glee Club, weren't you?

I dunno about Chris, but I was in choir, swing choir and barbershop.

[JohnnyReb]

Nooooo!  Not the knowledge bowls!

Hey, my son was on one of those.....they didn't call it 'the knowledge bowl'. 'Academic Challenge' is what they called it.

Anyway, he was shy/bashful and to slow to hit the buzzer....math questions, to slow and over his head.....Classical music, Art, Artist, he didn't have a clue.....poems/literature, forget about it.

Why was he on the panel then? POLITICS/HISTORY and all questions of a military nature, he answered them when neither team had a clue... the team coaches loved him because it was pretty much a tie between schools until they got to those questions. Wars, battles, Generals and causes of war have intrigued him since before he started school.....can't remember to get his lunch money or what 2+2 equals but let him read something of interest to him and he's got it down cold. I just wish he could apply a little of that to some other subjects.

[Thor]

The schools in Minnesota are far too excessive, IMO, at least where I have lived. Hastings school district spent some $20 MILLION on their new high school. The local taxpayers had to pay for the excess. Sure, it's a nice school, but far in excess of what a school needs to be.

The Gym:



The School:





More Excess

They did the same with Becker High school. I voted against the new auditorium as the auditorium is not used very much and had a cost of $FOUR MILLION. 

I feel the same about most of our government building throughout the country. They are far too luxurious and excessive. The governments could be spending the money a lot more frugally and do without all of the "eye candy".

[Celtic Rose]

Hey, my son was on one of those.....they didn't call it 'the knowledge bowl'. 'Academic Challenge' is what they called it.

Anyway, he was shy/bashful and to slow to hit the buzzer....math questions, to slow and over his head.....Classical music, Art, Artist, he didn't have a clue.....poems/literature, forget about it.

Why was he on the panel then? POLITICS/HISTORY and all questions of a military nature, he answered them when neither team had a clue... the team coaches loved him because it was pretty much a tie between schools until they got to those questions. Wars, battles, Generals and causes of war have intrigued him since before he started school.....can't remember to get his lunch money or what 2+2 equals but let him read something of interest to him and he's got it down cold. I just wish he could apply a little of that to some other subjects.

Good for him  

I was in choir in elementary and band and knowledge bowl in Jr. High.  Personally, I think that the extras, especially the music and art related ones, make for a better education.  My mom does the budget for a local elementary school, so I see how the union come out and fight and mess up the budget and how money gets wasted.  

[bkg]

The schools in Minnesota are far too excessive, IMO, at least where I have lived. Hastings school district spent some $20 MILLION on their new high school. The local taxpayers had to pay for the excess. Sure, it's a nice school, but far in excess of what a school needs to be.

They did the same with Becker High school. I voted against the new auditorium as the auditorium is not used very much and had a cost of $FOUR MILLION. 

I feel the same about most of our government building throughout the country. They are far too luxurious and excessive. The governments could be spending the money a lot more frugally and do without all of the "eye candy".

You clearly hate children. 

I agree with you 100%. The spending is out of control. 

[Thor]

You clearly hate children. 

I agree with you 100%. The spending is out of control. 

 

No, I really don't. However, I look at the schools I attended here in Texas. Most were several decades old and only ONE was "new". Even the new school, North Garland HS, wasn't too excessive when compared to today's schools. There were no luxurious additions. It was basic, frugal and functional. It had everything we NEEDED in order to learn, including a band hall, a choir room, a decent chemistry lab, a decent, but not overdone football stadium, etc.



This is the school I attended my Senior year (the same one that Sullenberg attended and it was built in 1955 or so) Again, functional and simple, not overdone:



I had the opportunity to work on the cable TV system for Eden Prairie High school in MN. I was awed by the accouterments. More excess. What ever happened to functional, but simple??

[bkg]

I have a friend who was a teacher/VP/Principal in McKinnely (SP?) school district. He's now a SuperIntendent in a smaller district. His school was brand new. Way over the top.

IMHO, tha'ts what happens when the focus shifts away from education.

[SSG Snuggle Bunny]

You clearly hate children. 

Not if they're properly marinated, tenderized and filleted.

[ColonialMarine0431]

Does this mean teachers will have to actually start teaching instead of wasting frivoulous time teaching the tykes to sing the praises of Dear Leader?

[thundley4]

Does this mean teachers will have to actually start teaching instead of wasting frivoulous time teaching the tykes to sing the praises of Dear Leader?

You mean like the ELEVEN videos of children singing the praises of The One listed and embedded on BigHollywood ?

[Thor]

Does this mean teachers will have to actually start teaching instead of wasting frivoulous time teaching the tykes to sing the praises of Dear Leader?

Ya know........ that's one thing that we never got into until my Senior year of high school, politics. Perhaps the schools need to get de-liberalized and start teaching the 3 Rs once again??

[jtyangel]

Does this mean teachers will have to actually start teaching instead of wasting frivoulous time teaching the tykes to sing the praises of Dear Leader?

This is a bit simplistic. This doesn't go on in my district, at least not on any kind of a massive level, but I can't speak to individual teachers here and there. This district is 'excellent with distinction' as far as testing, graduation rates, college rates, etc. They are indeed doing their job.

As for tax referendums, not all have crashed and burned. In central Ohio, all but one passed including the one hotly contested in Southwestern schools. And the other district that did not pass, has actually laid teachers off the last time it failed so they are cutting into the prescious teacher budget. I think what's going on here is that communities deeply affected by this economy  are having to say no at this point and the one community that lost it's bid for the replacement(btw) levy has a community full of people really struggling. The district in question has already made some very big cuts in EVERYTHING including administration so they aren't crapping around. I just think the community right now can't afford to fund the schools unfortunately. Just how it is at the moment and the school will look more like a rural area school that normally lacks many of the total rounded curriculum stuff until things improve. Kids will learn, but they may have to look at outside classes for things like art, sports, etc until the economy inproves to add them back. I think what is saddest, as someone from an academic background, is that this district will have to cut AP classes next year now. AP classes really are a frill, even though we have gottenused to them being in school districts. I hate to see them go though, but the athletically gifted kids have already taken a hit, as have those more inclined to artistic talents. It's time that the frills in academics be cut to to facilitate what the community is saying right now.

I mentioned the type of levy too because I think that is important. Right now is not th etime to run NEW levies for building new facilities or adding to the budget. Schools should only be running replacement levies to stay running and meet current or scaled back budgets.

[Thor]

Perhaps the school district administrators can take a pay cut and possibly a staff reduction in order to trim their budgets. I recall that the school district administrator in Hastings, MN was making somewhere around $150K maybe more (?). That seems to be a little much, IMO.

[ColonialMarine0431]

This is a bit simplistic.

I was being sarcastic.