Proposed cuts in education will have bad long-term effects

Dear editor:

I am dismayed at the prospect of a 5 percent cut in the education budget for the coming year.

The state is looking at three different areas in which they can try to save money and all of them adversely affect our children.

The state is looking at shortening the school year as a way to make these cuts. This is unacceptable. Children already have summers off and numerous days throughout the year and are lagging behind the rest of the industrialized world. Less time in the classroom should not be an option.

The other option is to reduce the amount of teachers that we have. My daughter is already in a classroom that has had as many as 31 students. It is difficult enough for our teachers to carry that load. How can children get a quality education that meets their needs when there is so much overcrowding?

The third option for cutting the budget is to cut transportation costs. This is probably the most viable place to make any cuts but remember that more children walking across Mountain Home's busy streets will be less safe.

While I understand the need to balance the budget in a worsening economy, I believe that the State of Idaho will be adversely affected for years to come if they turn their backs on our children's future by reducing the funding for our public schools.

There has to be some other solutions. Go to www.legislature.idaho.gov to contact your legislators and share your thoughts and ideas with them.

Rebecca Lampman