to be prepared post-pandemic
Education is our passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to the people who prepare for it today. –Malcolm X
So I know I said I wouldn’t do any think pieces but this is relevant. As we go back to school in this post-pandemic society, I would be remiss if I did not talk about education. If you know me, you know how passionate I am about providing for and protecting children.
All public schools pull funding from the taxes of the surrounding neighborhoods. The United States of America is one of the only, if not THEE only, developed country that relies heavily on local taxes to fund public schools. This is why you can have a large school district that spans most of the city but only certain parts of the district have schools that are funded well and have adequate resources. Taxes are collected from the businesses in the area and then distributed to the needs of the community. So think of it this way, all of the elements of the community that keep it running are funded through local budgets. This includes emergency services such as police, fire, and medical, schools, and even repaving the roads to a certain extent. So when we talk about defund the police, we are literally saying decrease the budget and use those funds to increase the education budget. I cannot make myself understand how whole police departments have new cars but the kids in the community have school lunch balances. The money is there but where are we spending it? Anywho, lemme stay on topic. TAXES!
Again, businesses collect local taxes and those taxes help pay for local schools. People are typically employed near their homes which is how kids who live near each other all attend the same school. I know there are some exceptions to this rule but for arguments sake, bear with me. If there are fewer businesses in an area, that means less taxes can be collected because there are fewer workers. When there are fewer businesses in an area, the property value is lower. Many people in low-income areas have been out of work even if they do work close to home. Let's do some maths. No work = no taxes. No taxes = no funding for the schools. So the question is, what will the underfunded schools in these low-income areas do? We already don’t have any school supplies or adequate books. What are we going to do with the push to move to internet only/hybrid learning? How are we supporting these parents? How are we supporting families? Anybody that knows kids or has worked with families understands the importance of educating everyone. And education is not limited to just what is learned in the classroom.
“Education is not limited to what is learned in the classroom.”
Generally speaking, Black and brown people work in service industries, i.e., fast food, nurses, CNAs, janitorial/cleaning services, etc. This means we have been classified as essential at some point. There is no way we can realistically leave our children at home when we are at work. Our kids need to be taken care of and fed during the day when parents are away from the home. Cool. But where are they going to go? We already know essential workers are being exposed daily and now we want to double expose the kids? Whet?? But the economy has to thrive or more jobs will be lost. And kids have to be in school because they just have to. So what do we do?
This is one of those times that my passion is running away with me, but I honestly don't have a viable solution. We can’t miss work and kids can’t be out of school forever. There is no right answer but every current option is very wrong. It’s almost like we are under poor leadership and this pandemic was mishandled in March. Who'da thunk?
Whew. And don’t get me started on teachers with kids. What will teachers do for their children? How will child care in general be reformed? Do you know the price of daycare? For tiny humans that can’t wipe their own butts or open juice boxes, it costs more than a lil bit.
And another thing! Don’t let these politicians tell you they can’t feed kids. We have had too many schools with astronomical lunch balances that nonprofit and not-for-profit organizations raise money to pay off. I am grateful that these balances are paid. I am grateful that people are seeing the issue and helping where they can. But all summer, every child has been fed 2-3 (and sometimes 4) full meals a day without needing to be enrolled and neither proof of residency nor enrollment has been required to feed children. Mind you, during the school year all of these things are required and non-negotiable. I will never applaud the government for feeding children. Never. It is never the child’s fault that they are hungry. It is never the child’s fault for wanting to eat more than a square slice of pizza, a diced pineapple, and a chocolate milk. I feel a rant coming on so I’m just going to hop off the soapbox now. Sheesh.
“Don’t let these politicians tell you they can’t feed kids.”
For your own references, in APA format because my high school English teacher is probably reading this, I have attached some links to where I got my information. If you have any references, feel free to comment below and/or email me. I would love to continue this conversation with y’all and shed more light on why this issue is vital to our kids and our communities.
Kozol, J. (2012). Savage inequalities: Children in America's schools. New York, NY: Broadway Paperbacks.
Hudley, C. (2013, May). Education and urban schools: The American mythology continues to insist that education is the path to the middle class for those struggling to escape the grip of poverty. Retrieved August 20, 2020, from https://www.apa.org/pi/ses/resources/indicator/2013/05/urban-schools
Hudley, C. (2013, May). Education and urban schools: The American mythology continues to insist that education is the path to the middle class for those struggling to escape the grip of poverty. Retrieved August 20, 2020, from https://www.apa.org/pi/ses/resources/indicator/2013/05/urban-schools