Gussie Farris: Why 42 Matters to Coahoma County

Today we have a piece written by Gussie Farris of Coahoma County describing the importance of having the assurance of stable funding. 

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All of us have budgets, we try our best to plan and stay within them.  They are an unfortunate fact of life for all of us. We worry and sweat over our jobs, because without our jobs, we can’t pay our bills. We want a vacation, but we must plan and save to afford it. Plan, plan, plan; we need to know that we have a stable source of income and then plan accordingly.

A school district has a budget and we plan and plan to spend our money wisely. We try to make every penny count. We need to know that we have a stable source of income or a budget just won’t work. Every year we wait breathlessly to see our funding allocation. It is like going to the Casino and gambling on the Roulette wheel. Where will it stop, nobody knows!

That is no way to ensure a solid education in this state for all children. From year to year, it might be feast or famine; though it’s been famine for so long, I don’t think any of us remember what a feast looks like. Education in this state can only move ahead when we have a stable and consistent source of funding. Uncertainty is toxic for proactive planning. To be able to plan for the future, we need to know that we can take care of the present.

Our present funding mechanism is broken and it needs to be fixed. We need stability and certainty in our funding, so that we can plan for the future. I have no problem with strings attached to more money. I totally agree that too much money is spent on people not in the classroom. We don’t need more  non-licensed people on staff, so that we can employ the community. What we need is stable funding to hire more highly qualified teachers, to conduct more intense professional development, and to fund adequate technology in every classroom. I would love to see 42 passed and the money allocated to those three areas.  Then and only then, will we have a stable base to move our education system forward into the future.

What about you? What is your story? Are you a public school educator in Mississippi with a unique perspective you would like to share? How does funding affect your students and your goals to educate them? First year teachers and veterans, administrators and support staff, writers and non-writers, celebrities and anonymous submissions alike, fresh perspective is what we're looking for! Let us know if you'd like to impact Mississippi education! 

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Disclaimer: The blog entries shared here are individual works that do not necessarily represent the ideas and opinions of the Show and Tell administrators.