SEQUESTER CUTS AIMED
AT THE KIDS, NOT GOVERNMENT WASTE
The White House has done it again. Did the
"sequester" affect the tens of millions of dollars to transport the
president, vice president, secretary of state, etc. from their (mostly
political travels) at up to $100,000 an hour? Nope. Did it stop any waste in
government? Nope. Did it stop White House tours that were manned by volunteers
and cost practically nothing? Yes. The White House is look...ing for VISIBLE HURT so they can have public opinion
support MORE SPENDING, MORE TAXES and MORE DEBT.
This is the latest piece of "sequester". This comes from Dr. Marguerite Rizzi, Superintendent of
Schools in
“There has been a great deal of
speculation about how the Federal Government ‘Sequestration,’
or mandated cuts in the absence of any deal on the deficit would impact
schools. This is uncharted territory and
not a situation with which any school district or municipal government is
familiar. In
Unfortunately the first impact of the
Sequester has arrived, and quite suddenly.
The district receives funds to offset the cost of taking Advanced
Placement exams for students who qualify for Free and Reduced
price lunches. These tests are
expensive, and the funds have insured that the cost would not be a barrier for
our disadvantaged students who have worked so hard to earn the right to take
the exams for college credit. Sitting
for Advanced Placement exams is a way to ensure acceptance in more prestigious
colleges and can even reduce the cost of a college education.
This announcement about the sudden
suspension of the funds comes on such short notice that families would be
scrambling to come up with the full cost of the exam. For some, it would mean the end of this
opportunity, which has been such a piece of so many students’ successful
academic careers. Fortunately, the
guidance budget has $1032 that can supplement the amount that has been lost,
and can step in and cover the cost of the fees, and they have been authorized
to do so.
It is
heartbreaking that this first impact of the Sequester hits students immediately
and our most resource challenged students at that. This is just the beginning. While it is possible to fill this gap other,
larger, gaps are coming, and it is not a reasonable expectation that the
district will be able to make these up.”