On my Soapbox for Just a Moment....

Today after work I spent some time making phone calls for my new school district.  See, tomorrow on the ballot they are asking for a renewal of the current tax levy, which would provide the district the money to operate as they have been for the last ten years.  It's not an increase (which they tried the last time and didn't pass), and won't raise anyone's taxes.  Yet people are trying to vote this down so that their taxes decrease.  They argue that since the economy is so terrible they want to save as much money as they can.  

If the tax levy doesn't pass, it means that the school district will lose $2.7 million a year,  which means cuts in sports, transportation, programs, and teachers.  

I can't imagine why anyone would NOT support their school referendums!  A school is the heart of towns, especially smaller towns like the one I work in.  Where is the town on Friday nights in the fall?  At a high school football game.  Who marches in local parades?  School bands.  Who donates countless hours of community service?  School groups.  And the list goes on and on.  Money for schools is an investment in the future of the town and in society.  We do a disservice to our kids when they don't have proper, updated materials, updated technology, and are in incredibly large classrooms.  

And while I'm certainly worried about how the students will suffer if the referendum doesn't pass, I'm also worried about my own job.  If the referendum doesn't pass, most likely there will be faculty cuts, and they always start with the subject matters that aren't "important", like the fine arts.  And, as I'm low man on the totem pole (again), I'll be the first to get the ax.  

So, when you vote tomorrow, make sure you vote "yes" for things that will improve your community, like school referendums.  You owe it to the kids.  

And now I step off my box.