Sunday, December 7, 2008

Education: Children Welfare vs Administrators Paychecks

Yesterday K-12 teachers and families turnout on a street corner in Rio Rancho to protest the poor management of their school system with the Rio Rancho school district facing a 4 million dollar short fall how can they not stand up and ask where the money went and how is it being spent currently. Families have a right to want to see their children receive a quality education and not to have administrators who have not been in the classroom for long periods of time entering those classrooms to teach. Education is one of those fields that require a great deal of work to stay current and it is hard enough for teachers who spend everyday in the classroom to stay current and effective. Parents surely have a right to be concerned when a school system says they plan on putting high salaries people in the classrooms who have not taught in years.

Chairman of the New Mexico Legislative Education Study Committee, State Rep. Rick Miera, D, has gone on Fox News networks, a right leaning network, to warn families and educational employees that cuts will take place this next year in the educational budget. One does have to wonder who State Rep. Rich Miera is listening to when he speaks about budget cuts since he is looking at classrooms and educational employee’s retirement funds but he has said nothing about school administration. When schools pay lobbyist to speak for their interest seldom is it about the people who work in the classrooms or student’s welfare for that matter. Perhaps it is time to ask ourselves if we can truly afford school administrators who receive paychecks in the $100,000 through $500,000 range not even bring up benefits. What after all is more important our children or those high paid administrators. One does have to wonder what Rep. Rick Miera’s honest answer would be to that question.