Letters to the Editors

Voters approved smaller classes, not more excuses

Re: We shouldn't raise taxes to reduce class size, letter from state Sen. Mike Fasano, Dec. 12.

The senator unfortunately appears to be playing the same game his predecessors have been playing for the past several decades. His entire letter was telling us why he can't support education properly in our state. He appears to join those who always come up with excuses. Is he cut of the same cloth as those politicians who tell us how much they care about our children and how much they care about giving them a quality education, but do nothing of substance to bring about significant changes?

Why is the Florida education system such a pitiful joke when compared to the rest of our country? The answer is simple. Our politicians have done little to promote quality schools.

Let me remind the good senator of a couple axioms that seem to hold true in this matter. You get what you pay for. There's no such thing as a free lunch. You get out of something what you put into it.

The senator and those who subscribe to his philosophy of making excuses for their questionable performances fail to realize that our education system is in its current state because teacher salaries are substandard, classes are overcrowded, the retirement system is terrible, discipline is horrible due to a lack of backbone by the Legislature, and finally, our political leaders have chosen to allow this to happen.

Sorry you don't like the amendment, Senator, but it's the only way those of us who want to see change take place could get anything done. Stop bad-mouthing Kendrick Meek, and do your job.
-- James A. Bates, Spring Hill

Voters want smaller classes

Re: We shouldn't raise taxes to reduce class size, letter, Dec. 12.

Sen. Mike Fasano's snide remarks about Kendrick Meek only half mask his real disrespect for the voters about class size. We knew what we wanted when we voted to reduce class sizes, and we knew what it would cost. He ought to admit that. When we tell them what we want, when we use our votes to force a plan of action, we expect our senators to try to do it.

Tallahassee probably doesn't need to raise taxes. We'll see. But his flat refusing even to consider it is not leading; it is, instead, disrespecting us and our decision.

He should forget Kendrick Meek and get down to the business of making this class size amendment work.
-- Ron Ogden, Palm Harbor

Be careful what you wish for

Re: Smaller class sizes.

I have listened to people prior to the election, and now I am amazed that many cannot understand that class sizes can't become smaller without someone paying for them. There isn't any magic that can make this happen. So many voted for this, and it appears that they never thought about how it was going to be funded.

I still can't understand why we needed smaller class sizes. I graduated in 1961, and even back then our classes had 35-40 students each and we didn't seem to have a problem. We are going to have a problem now.

Where are we going to get the teachers? We don't have enough now. The kids have homework in grade school, and the parents are the ones that have to figure out what the teacher wants them to do. I can see it now, back to split sessions. If we don't do split sessions, then we need more buildings and more teachers. Where is all this money going to come from?

I am sure that before long, the public will be blaming Jeb Bush for not taking care of this. Well, you all wanted this, and so now we are all going to pay the bill. When gambling is mentioned, we act like we live in the dark ages and it's sinful. The public better wake up and be careful what they wish for.
-- Betty Elsesser, Clearwater

High praise for education plan

Re: McKay vouchers.

As the parent of a child attending Paul B. Stephens Exceptional Student Center, I have followed the controversy surrounding the McKay vouchers with much interest. I felt a need to reply to one parent's extremely negative characterization of the Individual Education Plan, and of the public school system in general.

In my experience, the IEP process has been thoroughly helpful, professionally handled and enlightening. It is used to make the schools accountable for meeting certain educational goals for a particular child. Furthermore, I have nothing but the highest praise for the dedicated staff and faculty who have helped my child enormously during the three years he has attended two Pinellas County public schools: Ozona Elementary and Paul B. Stephens. My son's teachers, teachers' aides and therapists have consistently amazed me with their selfless professionalism and high goals for my son. These people are modern saints.

The public school system provides for the entire spectrum of abilities and socioeconomic backgrounds of its students -- a miraculous achievement. Only a small minority is ill-served by the public schools. My experience has been the opposite. I was advised by a top private school in Pinellas County, which my son attended as a pre-school student in a special program for developmentally delayed children, that the public schools would better serve his needs. This was excellent advice.
-- Davanna Cimino Kilgore, Ozona

Job posting: teacher wanted

Memo to President Bush:

Please look at what your brother did in Florida. He placed an accountant with no education experience in charge of education.

Why not use this logic and hire a teacher to set economic policy for the country?
-- Jim Reed, Largo

Florida on top in this arena

Re: College presidents' pay raises.

Well, maybe our state does have one of the lowest pay scales in the nation; maybe our state does have one of the worst school systems in the nation; maybe our state does have too few skilled people to attract high-paying jobs; maybe in our state only the children of the rich can afford college; but by golly, we're gonna have the best-paid college presidents anywhere!
-- Vernon Jones, Pinellas Park

Genshaft raise not appropriate now

Re: USF president Judy Genshaft's proposed raise.

As a recently laid-off employee from the University of South Florida after working there more than 10 years, I find it ridiculous that the board of trustees is considering this exorbitant raise including car and driver and "spousal compensation" at a time when two layoffs of employees have occurred in the last year and another one is expected. It is interesting that in a time of budget cuts, we can find money for this.

In addition to layoffs, programs for faculty and staff, like the leadership program that I directed, which encouraged women and minorities in leadership positions, have been cut. And students have less and less with huge classes being held in movie theaters.

The rationale is that university presidents need to be compensated like CEOs. Despite the effort to commodify everything, including education, education is not a product but a process that occurs in students. And, universities are not capitalistic corporations spitting out widgets.

When faculty and staff have jobs that are secure, then maybe a pay raise would be appropriate. And when all are paid decently, and students are taught by professors who are paid respectably, rather than the large number of Ph.D. professors earning $40,000 and adjunct faculty making $2,500 a course, then maybe a salary increase could be discussed.

This would be assuming that the president was a capable and qualified leader, which frankly, I and many others, including the student newspaper, the Oracle, call into question. Judy Genshaft has failed to deal effectively with issues that are controversial, and she has rancorous relationships with faculty and the faculty union. Never in her tenure here has she proved to be an adequate leader. Instead, she is a Panglossian puppet of the board of trustees, participating in clandestine governance routinely and conveniently scheduled when students and staff are absent. (See Sami Al-Arian decision made December 2001, and the upcoming salary decision.)

How can president Genshaft and the board of trustees be serious, and how can the underpaid and vulnerable employees and the underattended students accept this?
-- Mary C. Poole, Safety Harbor

Recalculation necessary

A recent St. Petersburg Times headline informed us of an increase of 12.5 percent of future college tuitions. Two days later, the headlines announced the college and university presidents' yearly salaries and benefits and proposed raises. A Dec. 13 article informed us of a president's new long-term contract being signed for more than a million dollars (USF's Genshaft to get lucrative five-year deal). Now, I'm not a genius by any stretch of the imagination, but I do know two and two make four. I cannot honestly justify such exorbitant compensation. This leads me to question the rational behind these ridiculous expenditures. Are they planning to raise tuition to justify these salaries?

Our college and university students are the future backbone of our country. If they are denied the privilege of furthering their education, this country will be in big trouble. I appeal to those in control of such ludicrous actions to take a good look at what's happening to our education system and perhaps do some recalculating.
-- Phyllis L. Silverstein, Treasure Island

Presidents' pay is not news

Re: College pay hikes prompt fears of one-upsmanship.

When I picked up the Dec. 12 paper and saw the eight faces pictured above the fold on the front page, I thought that I might be looking at a police lineup or a group of county commissioners caught with their hands in the cookie jar. Instead it turns out that these sensational photographs depicted eight state university presidents with their salaries scrawled below each picture.

Your layout implies that these administrators are stealing from our state, when in fact our voters continually insist that education is their very top priority. The citizens in Florida have a chronic fear of paying for any of the services they want, and I'm disappointed that the Times would exploit that.

Judy Genshaft and the other presidents deserve the money they are getting because Florida universities deserve presidents that are paid a competitive salary -- just like we deserve public school teachers that are paid a competitive salary. If the Times really wanted to print some news, maybe you should run similar pictures of the football coaches at these eight universities. My calculator tells me that all eight presidents together make about as much as Bobby Bowden does.
-- Adam Elend, Tampa

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