Four Santa Cruz County high school students, including two from San Lorenzo Valley, urged increased federal funding for schools and teachers in a presentation to U.S. Rep. Anna Eshoo at Scotts Valley City Hall.
Eshoo, D-Palo Alto, received the report from her annual Student Advisory Board on Saturday, May 30. Members are Elizabeth Reid-Wainscoat and Rowan O’Neal from SLV and Mariko Powers and Amy Rosenberg from Georgiana Bruce Kirby Preparatory School in Santa Cruz.
Reid-Wainscoat asked that Congress set a minimum annual income for all teachers that is “high enough to make teaching a competitive and desired profession.” She suggested that part of the military budget could be redirected to finance the salaries.
Eshoo seemed to agree.
“We spend $10 billion a month in Iraq alone,” she told the students. “It’s stunning to me.”
O’Neal studied the disparity in funding among schools, zeroing in on four high schools, San Lorenzo Valley, Palo Alto, Lindhurst in Yuba County and Nevada Union in Nevada City. He found “a clear correlation” between funding and student achievement.
His recommendation: A federal mandate for equal funding per student across each state’s schools, plus federal funding to fill the gap between poor and rich schools. “If you think education is expensive, try ignorance,” he noted.
Rosenberg tackled school nutrition programs, urging support for those that provide healthy choices to students.
Powers’ subject was social studies. She determined that students are not learning skills needed “to effectively participate in civic, community and political life.” She advocated more attention be paid to such instruction.
The students selected education as their subject for the annual report, which Eshoo said will be forwarded to Rep. George Miller, chairman of the House Education and Labor Committee.
