Editorial: We're not alone in education crisis

Crookston School Board members are probably wondering about now what in the world they were thinking of when they decided to give of themselves and get involved in the public education system.
     

News that the school district is in dire straits, having to slash around $1.5 million from next year's budget, is spreading through the streets and schools of Crookston like wildfire. Parents, students, district employees and others are in an uproar over particular items among the dozens of proposed reductions developed by the district's administrative team. 
   

For some, it's cuts to arts programs like music, drama and junior high art classes. Others worry about the fate of co-curricular academic activities such as speech and Knowledge Bowl. Getting rid of girls' swimming and junior high sports could be a blow to the athletic minded. The possibility of significantly larger class sizes, losing quality teachers and other staff, eliminating  programs that serve a small but important number of students, and overburdening the current staff are areas of concern that affect everyone.
   

Although the board didn't come up with this list, the dubious responsibility of deciding which proposed cuts to keep and get rid of now rests upon its members. In the coming weeks, they'll be closely scrutinizing each item by listening to everyone that voices concerns and weighing the options. They have their work cut out for them, and might not be the most popular people in town once the hatchet has officially fallen.
   

What, pray tell, did the board do in the past to deserve this? Nothing, nor did administrators or anyone else involved in the district on the local level do anything wrong in terms of finances.
   

The Crookston community is focused on what's happening within our own little school district, but the picture in schools across the state is equally dismal. We're all in this predicament due to a shortage of funds from the state level, some of which is trickled down from the federal government. It doesn't take a physicist to figure out that the recession, combined with huge federal and state deficits, is ultimately to blame and that the state of education is now in serious trouble.
   

The bigger picture shows the whole country's public education system falling apart and, believe it or not, many districts worse off than ours. Some experts say the looming cuts could have such far-reaching effects such as widening the achievement gap between students in rich and poor districts, increasing the unemployment rate and generally weakening schools. Any gains made in achievements over the past several years of No Child Left Behind are now being undermined.
   

So what's the answer? Obviously, more money, which everyone knows makes the world go round. Absent that, though, school districts need to come up with creative ways to fill the gaps from budget cuts like utilizing more volunteers, holding more fundraisers for certain activities and increasing parent involvement, which Crookston has been doing. While these options certainly don't solve the problem, they can help cushion the blow.
   

Next year will be a telling one for Crookston schools and noticeably different for students. The impact of some cuts will be evident after a few months, and some less obvious. If a new operating levy is passed in November, many of the eliminated items could be brought back for the next year, but a year without them could still have an unrecoverable effect on students.
   

So much for education reform.