LONG ISLAND, N.Y. — It is no secret that our country is in the worst economic crisis in recent history. There are many challenges being faced within our local communities. We are dealing with the impact of cutbacks at every level. Families are surviving on tighter budgets, companies are streamlining and downsizing and governments are looking at how to balance their budgets and decrease spending, or where appropriate, increase or maintain spending when it benefits the local community. According to the Long Island Presidents’ Council (www.yourschools.org), in a few months, school districts will be planning their own budgets and looking for community support.
Public school education is one of the areas which cannot be compromised. We need to support efforts to recruit, reward and retain qualified teachers and fund vital public school programs that are crucial for our children’s future. “Education is important to the survival of our communities and of our nation, especially in this economic crisis. How can we be the leader of the world if we no longer support the education necessary to compete in the world? We need to provide our children with the tools to survive in an increasingly global environment,” explains Jeff Rozran of the Syosset Teachers Association and Board Member of NYSUT.
Equal access to a quality education is promised to every student. And it is vital to the Long Island community and its future. Public education provides students with many, rich non-academic experiences, which provides for a prosperous future. A solid public school education makes a student more competitive, provides a vital skill set and knowledge that our society deems necessary and enables students to become contributing citizens. “Public school education provides our children with a foundation built on important subjects and skills that make them productive and successful,” added Huntington Town Councilman Mark Mayoka.
Despite chronic inadequate funding, Long Island public schools continue to be creative and find innovative and practical ways to provide our students with knowledge, skills, training and values that they need for their future to lead our country. Our academic programs are among the best in the country and our diverse and extensive array of extracurricular activities ensures our students receive a well-rounded, comprehensive and exciting educational experience.
It is important for our communities to support our local school budgets so that we ensure that we do not cut those that implement and address our challenges today and at the same time provide a strong foundation for the future. One of the means of getting our economy back on track is supporting education and investing in our students’ futures. In a few months we will have the opportunity to ensure our children’s future by ensuring strong support for our public school education programs and budgets.
