I had the welcome opportunity to visit my old high school a few months ago.
My history teacher is still plugging away, although he shared with me that he may end up retiring this year. Because the state cannot fund public education at the same level for next year without passing a temporary increase, school districts across the state may have to budget in furlough days and cut teacher salaries. In that scenario, my former United States History teacher conceded that he would take home more money just retiring.
Still, he admits that it would not provide him the greatest degree of financial security. Yet if school districts like Torrance Unified can do nothing but plan for the worst case scenario, dedicated teachers like him will have no other choice but to suffer with less pay the next year or retire with whatever the district is willing to offer.
Sadly, Torrance Unified is facing the same perils that are harassing many school boards. Rising pension costs coupled with lower tax receipts, fewer teachers, larger class sizes, all war against funding an adequate public education for our communities. These financial problems all suggest that the best way for schools to adapt is to decentralize and permit school choice. A competitive market-oriented system will force schools to invest their funds properly, rather than continuing with the wasteful practice of spending taxpayer funds without proper management, oversight, or innovation.
Shrinking attendance dollar allotments will cripple the already underfunded schools in our community. Rather than compelling taxpayers to fork over more money, why not reduce the bloated bureaucracy that dominates school districts and clutters up the efficiency and focus of our schools? Effective accounting, attention to detail, and investment in better allocation of resources cannot accomplished with unscrupulous or unmeasured budget cuts alone.