It’s interesting to hear the reasons against Measure A. Other communities aren’t doing this, so we shouldn’t either (hmm), the Board of Education mistreated a coach (very true, and not one will get my vote), inappropriate mailings were sent out by the superintendent (can we fire him?), the quality of the schools doesn’t keep house values high (then why do so many people talk about the quality of our schools?), our schools will still be tops in California if we don’t pass this (for how long?), and I don’t have kids in school so why should I pay (there’s streets in Davis I don’t use either, but I still pay for them).

The big question is what a quality education for children in your community is worth to you. We do, in fact, have a great school system full of smart, dedicated teachers and motivated students. There are programs that keep kids interested and add value to them as human beings.

Physical education, sports, music, arts, and shop are not “extras” to be cut when funding is low, they are critical to the development of a whole being. These programs take a long time to develop and add so much value to the education and intelligence of our youth.

There is absolutely no question that schools in California are being severely impacted by the state budget problems, and the question we have to ask is what we want to do to minimize that impact in our community. Is it worth an extra $200 a year ($4 a week) to have bright, motivated, intelligent, well-rounded kids running around our town or not?

Davis has one major export and that is education. We not only produce people with undergraduate or graduate degrees, but we also produce a whole crop of well-educated 18-year-olds who go forth to other professions, colleges and universities. The old sayings are true: You get what you pay for, and if you think education is expensive, try ignorance. Yes on A.

Randy Mager
Davis

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