Failing our kids yet again

     Yesterday was an important day for the children in our school district. We, as registered voters, had a huge responsibility, and we let our kids down...BIG time...

     The last time a tax levy was passed for Tecumseh Local Schools was in 1995, that was my freshman year of high school. I am now 32 years old, and graduated 15 years ago. We have tried to get one to pass NINE TIMES since, and it fails each and every time. If this fails again in August, the State will take over our district, which is bad news. We have already made huge cuts since 2004, and more are on the way.

     One of the biggest ones that will hit parents the hardest is transportation. Next year, bussing is only going to be provided for children K-8th grade, high school bussing will be eliminated, and because the high school is in the middle of the country, not too many kids can walk. If it fails again in August, bussing may be eliminated altogether.

    Another thing that is going to hit us hard is "Pay-To-Play" for sports. We have already implemented this, but it will now be $750 PER KID, PER SPORT. Most of us in this community have no way to afford this, so sadly, our children may not be able to participate in a sport or activity that they love. This can also eliminate any opportunities for kids to get scholarships and get into college. This fee doesn't cover the costs of uniforms, transportation, or anything like that. It is just a fee to be able to be part of the team. In August, sports/extracurricular programs can be eliminated altogether also.

     One more big problem that will come of all this next year affects elementary kids. Since it is not a requirement to have the "fun" classes as my kids like to call them, there will be no Art, P.E., or Music. So now the fun will be taken away from our youngest students, the age that they still LIKE school. Awesome, so now they will learn NOT to like school even younger. Oh and one more thing, this affects all the grades, there is no more field trips. We already cut down field trips to ONE per grade, per year. Now that's gone. No more field trips. I know when I was in school, I always LOVED going on field trips. The kids won't have that now.

     Now that I vented via my blog, I still don't feel any better about the situation. I am hoping that there are readers out there that can empathize, and if you have any suggestions I am open to them! If you are a member of my community, and are in the Tecumseh Local School district, I hope that you will vote YES in August. Our kids need us. We reap what we sow, and if we are setting our kids up for failure, what do you think will happen in the future? It doesn't look too pretty...