The state of California's public school system is currently in a
state of total desperation as we now find ourselves struggling with
the economic slashes of Governor Arnold Schwarznegger's budget
proposal which severely cripples the revenue allocated to our public
schools. With California's rising population of students we are now
desperately trying to accommodate for their arrival. But with these
drastic limitations it is becoming more and more difficult to provide
our students with the vital resources necessary for the preparation
of our future California working force, and ultimately our global
economy. According to California state treasurer Phil Angelides
he, "believes strongly that our economic strength in the future will
be based in large part on the investments we make today in the
education of our young people." His beliefs, though once thought of
as the educational norm around the United States, are now felt with
little optimism in the eyes of Californians as we now face diminished
educational institutions that are constantly struggling to provide
adequate education while sacrificing programs and resources which
promote both ethnic diversity and higher levels of self esteem.
These programs include sports, arts, counseling, and university
outreach programs.
According to our governor this sacrifice is necessary. To
fulfill his "no-tax" pledge to the people of California it is
necessary to make these cuts at the expense of the California student
population. But what is now emerging is a state whose public school
system is slowly evolving into a collection of private institutions
as they are now forced to find ways to generate their own revenue to
make up for their growing losses. Furthermore, it is widening the
gap between the low and mid class citizens with the upper class, as
poor, underprivileged school districts are scrambling to provide
resources that stay current with...