And then there's music

As a follow-up to yesterday's post, Mike Bell reminds us that music also suffers when funding for public education declines.  For poor kids, anyway.

"The money gap goes much deeper in our high schools than the wages of a physical trainer in football programs. You can see very clearly how large the gap is by watching our neighborhood parades in the spring and summer. Some high school bands proudly march by with $50,000 in uniforms and instruments while some schools have a $100 second-hand boom box and $50 worth of T-shirts."

Reminds me of what I wrote two years ago about instrumental music all but disappearing from Portland's high schools as a consequence of Measure 5 and the failure of the state legislature to "muster the will" to replace money lost to schools with the property tax limitation.  In that post the main villain was school choice and the resulting depopulation of Portland's poorest schools. 

School choice might be of less consequence were more money available for schools generally.  But we'd ultimately still witness the same glaring inequities in parent involvement and school demographics that are so apparent today in Portland.

When all the "good" kids and their parents are allowed to congregate in a handful of desirable schools, bad things happen.  Even with adequate funding. 

Comments

[Steve R.]

Now that the Dems have a "super majority" in the state house, there can be no excuse for not fixing the disgrace that is Oregon's revenue system.

As much as I've harped on PPS for failing to do the right thing with what they've got, the root of the problem really is Measure 5. The solution is a total redesign of our tax system, as well as the one-size-fits-all school funding formula that completely short-changes urban school districts.