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Voters should be able to reassess class size amendment

Re: Bush: Reconsider class size, March 29.

Gov. Jeb Bush has proposed a viable alternative to implementing the class size amendment. Florida voters in 2002 had good intentions, but there is more to the story that needs to be told.

The potential harm inflicted on our schools to implement the class size amendment is enormous. Music and art rooms could become classrooms, money could be shifted away from teacher salaries, and students could be rezoned and bused to schools with lower-than-average class size.

The proposal regains the balance in education funding by providing flexibility to school districts in meeting the constitutional requirements for class size and increasing beginning teacher pay to $35,000.

The average beginning teacher salary in Florida is $31,731. In Pinellas County, there are more than 400 beginning teachers with an average salary of $31,003. In addition, Pinellas has almost 3,000 teachers with a salary of less than $35,000. Under the governor's proposal, all those teachers would receive a salary increase to $35,000, and those earning above that amount will receive a $2,000 increase. Gov. Bush knows that teachers are what really make the difference in the classroom. Florida would be better served by focusing on attracting and retaining quality teachers by increasing teacher pay.

Florida has a constitutional responsibility to provide a high quality education for its students. We also have a responsibility to make the truth evident about the high costs of implementing the class size amendment if nothing were to change. Florida citizens will have an opportunity to choose whether to keep the class size amendment as it is, taking much needed funds away from teachers and instruction. Or, they can choose to take a second look. The governor's proposed resolution gives Florida another chance to make the right choice for our students.

Showing contempt for the voters

Re: Bush: Reconsider class size.

Spending $18-million for a special election to revise the popular 2002 class size constitutional amendment shows contempt for the will of the public. Floridians should resist forfeiting the gains guaranteed by the current class size amendment for those promised in Gov. Jeb Bush's proposal.

Gov. Bush has proposed freezing implementation of the class size amendment at the district level and mandating a minimum teacher salary of $35,000 statewide. For far too long, both Pinellas Schools and the state Department of Education have provided minuscule salary increases coupled with a demoralizing increase in class size. Such accompanying salary increases, in actuality, were not increases at all. Only through an ultimate class by class student ceiling (as is provided for in the current class size amendment's final phase) can both genuine salary increases and actual class size reductions be realized.

If a school district has the "flexibility" to determine a districtwide class size average, then actual classes could still be in the 35-plus student range while resource teachers (who have no actual students) and ESE staff could be used to artificially decrease the district class average. It's an old trick. That is why the citizens of Florida passed the 2002 amendment in the first place.

If small class size is the most sought-after quality when comparing private schools, why should it not be a major goal for public schools? Only those who seek to defund and permanently cripple public education would support a revision of the 2002 class size amendment.

A lose-lose deal for teachers

Jeb Bush's proposal to hold a special election that will cost taxpayers $18-million gives teachers a lose-lose option. Choice A: Repeal the class size amendment and receive a pay raise that brings us closer to a living wage. Choice B: Keep the class size amendment in order to have manageable classrooms in which we can truly educate children, but continue to earn far less than the national average. Why is it that whenever the Legislature meets there is money for everything but a quality education in Florida?

FDLE cooperates with local authorities

A recent article incorrectly suggested there was nearly a showdown between agents of the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) and the local police agencies that are maintaining order at the hospice that is caring for Terri Schiavo. That is not the case.

FDLE, the Pinellas Park Police Department and the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office were in constant communication to ensure that our agencies were fully coordinating any potential activities surrounding Ms. Schiavo. Initially, FDLE's special agent in charge for the Tampa region personally reached out to our local partners, reiterating our commitment to cooperation while carrying out our shared responsibility for public safety.

Thereafter, I personally spoke with the Pinellas County sheriff and provided him with the same assurances. And, I made a follow-up call to the police chief to make sure that she was comfortable with the way FDLE handed this sensitive situation. The chief assured me that FDLE acted in a professional manner at all times.

We pride ourselves on maintaining a close relationship with local law enforcement, and we operate as a team to keep Florida and its citizens safe. This case was no different.

If media left, protesters would go

Wouldn't it be wonderful if the media could band together and move out of the area near the hospice and give the other patients and families there some peace?

I believe if the media would leave, the demonstrators would move elsewhere to get media coverage. My heart goes out to the families and patients who have to endure what is now being called a "circus."

Let them keep their distance

If protesters must be kept a "safe" distance from President Bush, then why does the same policy not apply to the infirm and their families at Hospice House Woodside? Can we not have the same respect for families in heart-breaking situations that we have for a president?

I disagree with the policy regarding Bush, but I think it's extremely hypocritical to not apply the policy across the board. Respect the dying and those who love them.

Jackson should have stayed out

Isn't it ironic that Jesse Jackson comes to town to put his 2 cents into the Terri Schiavo matter and talks about morality and values? This comes from a man who was advising President Bill Clinton after his affair, while at the same time committing adultery himself. He has no right to talk to the nation about morality and values. He should have stayed out of this personal family matter.

[Last modified March 31, 2005, 01:27:20]