Find the money somewhere else

With 53 teachers in Huntington Beach facing possible lay-offs, it is

time to reevaluate where our tax dollars go.

After several number-crunching sessions to balance budgets,

officials in two of Surf City’s three school districts were forced to

hand out pink slips last week, laying the groundwork for lay-offs

this spring.

Although the Ocean View School District and Coast Community

College District have said they can weather the storm without laying

anyone off, the Huntington Beach City School District gave notice to

45 teachers, and the Huntington Beach Union High School District gave

notice to eight.

Those 53 teachers now have to wait and see how it all pans out,

unsure of their future.

What about the future of their students, the children of

Huntington Beach?

Gov. Gray Davis’ deep budget cuts affect students from

kindergarten through the college level. Programs and classes are

being eliminated even in districts where they say lay-offs will be

avoided.

What else is there in the state budget that is as important as

educating children?

California already struggles with student test scores and

achievement. Programs that were once taken for granted, such as art,

gym and music, are already a thing of the past, or surviving on

funding by PTA or booster groups.

Schools cannot stand to lose any more funding. If children don’t

get a proper education, how can we hope for the economy to improve?

Who will engineer the roads of tomorrow if we spend that money on

roads now and not on educating students, our future leaders?

Residents should pick up a pen and write to Davis. Tell him to

leave educational funding alone.