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Referendum Day - The Precarious Balance Between Public Education Funding and Those Who Fund It.


By Elizabeth Scheinberg
Referendums can build schools and divide communities. These archaic funding mechanisms are the life blood of Delaware's traditional public schools in a state that has whittled away it's own personal support for those it is asked to educate.  And the benefits flow flow from the districts to our charters. To be fair, there have always been legislative and local voices  that have challenged the dwindling of education dollars by our state leadership. But, these folks are the minority.  They are beacons of sanity in a sea of craziness.

 But, referendums, though a lifeblood, also represent a sacred trust between elected school board members an their constituents. Though seldom discussed,  school board members are called to a greater Challenge than just funding the education of our children and making policy.  They are called to balance the needs of our children with the tax payers ability to fund it.  This isn't a new concept. But, it is the hard work of the elected.

 And in Christina it's infinitely more difficult than it should be.  As much as we want to blame the recession as a greatest likelihood for potential failure, CSD's biggest obstacle is itself. Our district just can't get over its history.  Sshhhhh.  Don't tell, we don't like to talk about it.  Yet, it's as glaring as the shuttered solar power factory that's a hop, skip, and a jump from my own home.

 So let's dispel some myths and rehash some history -

 The solar panel factory on executive drive is for sale and has been for at least four years.  Find a buyer and I suspect the district would succinctly close the deal.  They want it for its future potential.  They can't afford to fit it out to be the school of tomorrow.  It stands as a sad reminder that CSD could never afford it, that we, the public,  were all duped by a dirty Broad superintendent named Joey Wise, who fled to Florida and continue to wreak havoc on school children there.  Yeah, that guy, he's his own consultancy now - Atlantic Partners.

Fact:  Districts have received fewer state dollars consistently over the last 8 to 10 years.  The remaining funds that have been earmarked for education and operations have become more prescriptive and restrictive. From now to eternity, we will all lament the loss of the Minner Units and decry the required data coaches that took their place.

 Yet Unknown:  There is no plan for CSD's city schools.  The public is woefully mistaken when it assumes that CSD "giving" its city schools to Red Clay.  The board resolution to align with the preliminary WEAC recommendations has no legal girth.  Even the state is at a loss for how to proceed.  And the rumors, spawned by floating bills, that have yet to have been dispelled are flabbergasting:

 1. CSD's city schools will go to Red Clay? or just the priority schools?
2. Red Clay is asking for 8 years of funding from CSD for the schools in question.
3. The whispered-of weighted funding formula for the city schools will bankrupt the suburbs.
4. DOE is going to stop authorizing charter schools in the city.
5. The latest - A capital referendum in two years to address the aging operational systems of our buildings.

 It's this list that weighs on me and churns through my head at night.  With so many questions, it's hard to lend a vote to support the referendum in my district. I understand fully what will happen if today's referendum fails. Cuts.  We all hate cuts. They bleed...everywhere. And they just don't make band-aids big enough for these cuts...

 But, I, like many others, have to find a balance between what is right for the 15,000 kids my taxes support and for the two our already stretched paychecks provide.

 In the end, I know my vote.
I'm pretty sure you do, too.
And we'll all live with the hand that fate's dealt us.
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