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| Written by Elizabette Gecamburu / Community Columnist | |
| Wednesday, 16 April 2008 | |
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 Elizabette Guecamburu / Community Columnist Four billion dollars is a lot of money by anyone’s standards — even Bill Gates’. I can’t imagine that much money, as can’t most people on this earth. Governments and corporations are usually the only ones that deal in such currencies, so it is out of the realm of our common understanding. But $4 billion is a number that all Californians should be worried about. It is the amount of money that is to be slashed from our public schools. California already ranks 47th nationally in per-pupil spending. In addition, according to the reference book “Education State Rankings 2006-2007,” California public schools also rank 47th overall — the only states with worse public schools are Mississippi, Nevada and Arizona. With such dismal ratings, it seems that the last thing California should be cutting is the education budget. As the brilliant Susan B. Anthony said, “If all the rich and all of the church people should send their children to the public schools, they would feel bound to concentrate their money on improving these schools until they met the highest ideals.” Education is an investment — one from which rich, poor, immigrant and native all benefit. We shouldn’t abandon public education. By doing so, we abandon one of the principles that make America great: The idea that all people have the opportunity to learn and better themselves. Our world is growing and changing all the time, with new technologies and innovations altering the way we live and work. If our children are unprepared to inherit the responsibilities of our evolving society, how will they succeed and compete in the global economy? I feel that, as a community, we need to decide what we value the most. Will we let $4 billion evaporate from our public schools? Or will we make finding another solution to the budget crisis a priority? We shouldn’t forget that there are consequences for every action — every budget cut — we make. If our students aren’t provided with the educational support they need, what kind of life will they lead? I stumbled upon this quote by Mark Twain: “When I was a boy on the Mississippi River there was a proposition in a township there to discontinue public schools because they were too expensive. An old farmer spoke up and said if they stopped building the schools they would not save anything, because every time a school was closed a jail had to be built.” A wise man, that Mr. Twain. I leave you with one final question. On which would you rather spend your money: teachers and schoolbooks, or prison guards and cages? Elizabette Guecamburu is a writer and native Patterson resident. She accepts e-mails at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it Comments
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we need to keep the children off the streets.
KEEP WRITING