Letter: Fund schools to help students succeed

During the 2015-16 school year, many rural schools, like my own, faced program and faculty cuts from budget reductions. This has affected the 2017 school year immensely; departments such as agriculture, engineering and technology have been cut to half time. As technology is changing the future workforce, these classes are a crucial part of every student's education.

Ideally, the fewer number of classes per subject offered would cause an increased number of students per class. However, the lack of teachers throughout the building means that many high school teachers have to drop certain classes to increase their available time to teach other levels of classes. The consequence of these actions is leading to students sacrificing important electives to fit in their graduation requirements.

The decline in funding resulted after Gov. Terry Branstad vetoed a $55.7 million bill in 2015. Initially, the bill was presented to grant Iowa schools one-time funding, making up for statewide disputes over the previous year's budget. Branstad vetoed the bill because the Legislature failed to create the second year of funding to backup for this requested, one-time increase.

This is a call for adequate school funding by the state government. Restricting a student's opportunity to take classes that will strengthen the future community is not a solution. Help the youngest generation succeed by providing schools with equal, as well as unique opportunities, so we can succeed. Don't shortchange Iowa's schools or any student's future.

Delaney Sturtz

Cedar Rapids