Where is the Money for Schools Going?

By MeMeG
Published/Last Modified on Thursday, November 19, 2009 11:37 AM CST

I see there are a few brand new schools around here. My son goes to one that was just built. Its a beautiful building. But why did they need a brand new school? The elementary school I went to was built around 1900 and is still being used today, while having been remodled a few times and having additions put on the school grounds. Same with the HS I went to.

But my concerns are less with the looks of the new buildings than with the use of funding that could be better used for the students. At my son's school there are (supposedly) computers in every classroom for the student. In his class I saw two computers which he has told me they rarely get to use. Why are they there if they aren't used? There should be more computers in the classrooms for frequent use for the children. My son had to print something off of his memory stick/thumb drive (because my computer was in the shop) and his teach told him he wasn't allowed to print at school. WHAT? REALLY? Shouldn't there be funds available for paper and ink for printing? At least in black and white. Especially when not every student has the privilage of having a computer at home... Why did we even have to provide memory sticks to the students if they don't get used at school?

Basics should have come before brand new schools. The money would have been better spent on upgrades to the facilities rather than new buildings. How about using money on supplies that should be in every classroom so parents don't have to go buy supplies every month for classroom projects. There are students in my son's classroom that do not have adequate supplies so the constantly borrow and steal from him. Supplies such as construction paper and glue should be in the available for them if they don't have their own. A teacher should not allow them to take the supplies that one student has, supplies that parents have worked to pay for.

I don't want to make this any longer so I won't go into other examples. I just want to know why the people deciding how to spend money didn't think of better uses for it. Building new schools all over the place was very impractical. Just because a building is old doesn't mean that it couldn't be filled with state of the art learning/teaching equipment and everything the students need for a great education. The school board, principals, teachers and community should know this.

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Comments

MeMeG wrote on Dec 3, 2009 8:06 AM:

" No one said we were against new schools. I am against new schools that are not needed. New schools that are needed are fine, but don't just build a new school to build it, just to spent up the budget. How about improving the selection of books in the Library? Upgrading a school doen't mean that a brand new building is needed for every school. "

Informed Citizen wrote on Dec 2, 2009 4:13 PM:

" The ones that are against new schools are total idiots!! Have you been to any of the existing school lately? To the ones that are complaining that they didn't have A/C when they went to school, you need to get up with the times and not live in the past. I didn't have it when I was in school either, but that was a different era. Why deprive our kids of a comfortable environment to learn in if we are able? By reading some of the responses it seems that the heat may have affected your learning, especially in English. "

Advocate of Air Conditioning wrote on Nov 21, 2009 4:07 PM:

" I didn't attend an air conditioned school until 9th grade, and I always did well in school. But, I have to admit that I was more comfortable in an air conditioned school. It was easier to stay focused on school work when I wasn't uncomfortable from our high heat and humidity or glancing past the many open windows.

Air conditioning can't make children learn, but being more physically comfortable and less distracted by what's outside may make it easier for children to focus and learn at school.

Air conditioning newer school buildings is also more energy_efficient. "

Outraged wrote on Nov 21, 2009 7:00 AM:

" I remember when I was in school there was no air conditioning and we were 30 plus in a classroom!!!
If I came home with bad grades I would get a good butt warming by my mother and when my daddy got home he would give me another warmer on my butt!!!
Then I would be punished and couldn't play after school!!!
The teachers used to put comments on my report card like "Outraged could do much better! He's not applying himself!!!
There are no consequences for most children's failures in school!!! "

MeMeG wrote on Nov 20, 2009 2:51 PM:

" To did you vote:

My lowly vote didn't matter because many voters are clueless (mess we're in today... thank the voters)

On the donated supplies matter: I heard constantly where to donate them, but never heard how to get them if you were in need.

About learning at home: I agree, but our schools are still not up to par. How do you send a student home with assignements like "type a 2 page story..." when they haven't been taught to type or to use Microsoft Word? A little bit backwards if you as me. "

MeMeG wrote on Nov 20, 2009 2:42 PM:

" I'm not saying that none of the new schools needed to be built. Some did, some didn't. Some others to be replaced and some don't.

The comment about A/C... We didn't have it in Elem. school either, we had windows (like those that have been used for centuries).

A new school building will not help the children learn either, let alone the grade of teachers I have come across here.

I like the idea of billing parents for school supplies. Just don't force a student to give up their's for other kids. "

Administrator wrote on Nov 20, 2009 2:28 PM:

" Calcasieu Parish has built no new high schools since 1971 (Barbe). Calcasieu Parish schools consistently outscore most other parishes in Louisiana (including Iberia) on standardized testing by huge margins. You don't need new schools. You need to demand excellence from your children. You seem to be preparing them for a world in which everything is perfect. "

Cajunator wrote on Nov 20, 2009 1:34 PM:

" You're right, Catholic High didn't have air conditioning until around 1990, but look at how many college graduates and productive people it has produced over the years. Look at how old some of the other private school buildings are. For Pete's sake, until recently Glencoe Charter School was nothing more than a series of connected modular buildings, but it managed to rate higher than its competitors. Exactly how much do you think these fancy new buildings will teach your kids? "

Outraged wrote on Nov 20, 2009 12:31 PM:

" To Educated:
They don't need an education!!! Obama will provide for EVERYONE!!!
Politicians keep throwing money at a problem and saying it will fix the problem, but it's the parent or in some cases parent's that are the problem!!! And it will get worse!!!
Most kids who drop out are more knowledgeable about welfare benefits and what they can receive from benefits than any working person!!!
There is no incentive for them to learn!!! No punishment for their failures either!!! "

To Educated wrote on Nov 20, 2009 12:06 PM:

" Thank you! Be prepared. You will receive a ton of comments condemning you for bringing up the disgraceful way people submit posts on here. "

Educated wrote on Nov 20, 2009 10:22 AM:

" All of the new buildings and supplies and money in the world will not help your children to become better educated. Teachers, no matter how well-trained, cannot do the job alone. Education begins and ends at home. After hearing the speech and seeing the writing of the local populace, I sure don't expect much in the way of a future for the children of this community. I hope the local children are being taught how to cut cane and how to sweep floors. That is all they are prepared for. "

To in agreement wrote on Nov 20, 2009 7:33 AM:

" Dodson Elem. school has needed to be replaced for a long time. For starters, Dodson Elem. has NO parking lot, and I have noticed a mildew odor shortly after walking through the front doors of the school, although I didn't see any mildew. That doesn't mean that North Lewis Elem. didn't need to be replaced also, because it really did. I hope that Dodson Elem. will be replaced with the millage tax renewal that passed by a majority "yes" vote of the public last month. There are other schools that need to be replaced also. "

Me Too wrote on Nov 20, 2009 7:33 AM:

" To MeMeG: my school didn't even have air conditioning, yet I learned how to read and write much better by the third grade than most of today's high schoolers. Go ahead and keep pouring good money after bad and see where that gets you. "

Schools wrote on Nov 20, 2009 6:19 AM:

" People that want to complain about the schools being built go look in Lafayette. They've only built 1 or 2 schools in the last 20-30 years. Most of our schools were built in the 50's & 60's. NLE was built in '54 & only had 24 classrooms under roof and about a dozen classrooms added on outside. It was overcrowded when I went there in the 80's it was past time for an upgraded. North Lewis should have been bigger and Dodson students moved to it. Its not practicale anymore and its land locked. "

did you vote wrote on Nov 19, 2009 6:23 PM:

" There was an election just the other day to decide if we were to continue with building schools and it passed overwhelmingly. The people have spoken. Get over it. "

To MeMeG wrote on Nov 19, 2009 5:03 PM:

" There are school supply donation drives before school starts every year, but I don't know how the donated supplies are distributed.

When my younger child needed more supplies in the middle of last school year, her very wise teacher sent a note home listing the supplies she needed refilled.

If the school board had to supply all of the students whose parents neglected to send school supplies for their own children, maybe the neglectful parents should be billed for the supplies not provided willingly.

I want my tax dollars used to build the new schools. "

To MeMeG wrote on Nov 19, 2009 4:05 PM:

" WE, the taxpayers, VOTED a few years ago for these new schools to be built. I"m happy that my children's school was recently replaced. Their old school wasn't designed for air conditioning and the A/C units kept breaking. The office at the old school was too small for more than a couple of parents or students to be in there at once. The bathrooms were not climate controlled and smelled awful. The cafeteria was very overcrowded during events. I believe MORE of the old schools should be replaced. "

In agreement... wrote on Nov 19, 2009 1:59 PM:

" I think the new schools that were chosen were the wrong ones. Dodson is in need of a new building and North Lewis got the new building. Who and why was this decision made for North Lewis? anyway, your right it's not the building that matters. The monies are being used irresponsibly. "

hmm wrote on Nov 19, 2009 1:55 PM:

" You sure whine a lot. "

Cajunator wrote on Nov 19, 2009 1:25 PM:

" The answer is very simple. If they don't use the funds, then their budgets will be cut the following year. So they play this game called "Spend As Much As You Can And Keep Begging For More". After all, "it's for the children". This is the whole underlying premise of any government entity. It works on the exact opposite principle of any private entity, where the goal is to be as efficient as possible. That's why the idea of running our health care system on this same model baffles me. "

Citizen wrote on Nov 19, 2009 12:46 PM:

" Some on the school board might have a friend or associate or family member that might have land for sale that might be in a good location for a good new school!!! Or maybe someone might get a contract to build the school or furnish furniture or equipment like restaurant equipment or air conditioning or any other service!!! "

Me Too wrote on Nov 19, 2009 12:33 PM:

" I was wondering the same thing. I do understand why some schools need to be rebuilt (storms, etc), but what was wrong with N. Lewis Elementary? What good are all these new building when the kids are graduating without learning how to read and write? Maybe we should ask (or as he says it, "AXE") the school board president. It's sad that we allow people who cannot even raise their own kids right to make decisions about our kids. "

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