Let’s commit to strong public schools

Iowans love our public schools and we all see them as the heart of our communities. We take pride in the teachers, school staff, and administrators for the tireless effort they put in to prepare our kids for the future.

Every morning when I dropped my two kids off at school, I was proud to know that I was sending them to learn from some of the best educators in the nation.

But after a decade of low state funding, our public schools have been asked to do more with less for so many years we've lost ground. Our kids are missing opportunities, too many educators are leaving, and a growing number of young leaders won't even consider becoming educators.

Instead of leading the nation in public education like we did for generations, Iowa is now in the middle of the pack.

Gov. Kim Reynolds and Republican lawmakers have been ignoring requests from our educators for far too long and have spent too much time bringing the culture wars into the classroom.

Students who need additional assistance with reading, as well as kids with mental health challenges or different learning styles, will find it harder to get services this school year because Reynolds insisted on cuts to Area Education Agencies (AEAs). We've heard some rural school districts are already out of special education dollars for this school year. Kids are missing out on reading classics from their school libraries after Republicans passed a book ban.

School vouchers are now shifting hundreds of millions from public schools to private schools. According to data released by the Iowa Dept. of Education, over newly accredited private schools are now taking vouchers since the bill was passed by Republican lawmakers just two years ago. Of those, just four are in rural areas.

At a cost of more than $360 million so far, vouchers are the fastest-growing part of the state budget. Next school year, the nonpartisan estimates show another huge increase in state dollars going to vouchers as they become available to everyone who already attends private schools, regardless of income.

I've heard from so many folks over the last few years who are just fed up with what's happening at the state Capitol. They feel like the legislative majority is passing legislation they don’t support.

Reynolds and GOP lawmakers have just gone too far.

It's time to drop all the politics and renew our commitment to strong public schools. Here are some ideas to get it done:

Fully fund public schools to keep up with rising costs and guarantee every kid in every ZIP code gets a great education.

Raise pay for all educators, including associates and paraprofessionals.

Keep public money in public schools.

Reverse the Governor's plan to gut AEAs and improve local delivery of special education services to Iowa kids.

I know we're all frustrated our public schools have become the target of the special interests at the State Capitol and educators who have been tossed in the middle of the culture wars.

We can do better. It's time to bring some balance back to the Statehouse. Our kids deserve it.

State Rep. Jennifer Konfrst is the Iowa House Democratic Leader.