Culver’s preschool program backfired

By Lowell Rutz

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I am responding to the Jan. 16 editorial (“Go slow on preschool changes” where you indicate The Gazette's support for “efforts to make quality preschool available to Iowa children.” I believe you owe the hundreds of preschools that have operated in Iowa for many years an apology.

The implication is if government gets involved improvement will follow. In reality, former Gov. Chet Culver's ill-conceived plan is a fiasco.

Many private non-profit and for-profit centers have been forced to reduce staff or close because of this program. Why is this so bad? Your next line of your editorial answers part of the question. School districts are already stating they have inadequate funds.

I spoke with a school board member just this past week. He was terribly frustrated by having to cut staff and programs in his K-12 system, and yet justify using the preschool money to start a new preschool knowing full well they will use some of their current funding to adequately operate a preschool. When you can't pay your current mortgage, you don't add another room onto the house.

It has been reported in The Gazette that less than 50 percent of those children now enrolled in the state-run preschools are from low-income families. In many cases, families that can well afford to pay for preschool are taking advantage of “free” (think tax money) preschool. One director stated she can “pick and choose” who she will accept into her program. One obvious partial solution is to assist low-income families to help supplement preschool tuition where needed.

Preschool is not mandatory in Iowa. I think all Iowans should be extremely concerned about this attempt to develop state-funded preschools. The next obvious step will be to mandate preschool for all 4-year-olds.

I suggest we clean up the former governor's faulty plan by assisting individual needy families with a portion of the tuition, assisting the many fine preschools still in existence with some of their needs, and cut taxes to for-profit programs, which are seeing their property tax dollars being used to directly compete against them.

The last thing our state government and local school districts need to be doing is starting new programs. I also know that you cannot beat the efficiency of private schools when put head to head with the costly government-funded programs.

Lowell A. Rutz and his wife, Connie Rutz, owners of Loving Care Learning Center, have operated a preschool in Cedar Rapids for nearly 29 years. Comments: lowellarutz@gmail.com