The canary is singing loudly about the demise of our public schools. The Claremont School District, which has economic challenges, limited resources and one of the highest property tax rates in the state, is struggling. The public schools there are so strapped for money, it’s not clear if they will be solvent in a couple of months. This is a harbinger of things to come for public schools in New Hampshire, largely because of the continued lack of state funding for public schools.
For three decades, Claremont and other towns have fought in the courts for the state to fulfill New Hampshire’s constitutional obligation to provide free, quality public education. Despite court rulings, the state has continued to drastically underfund public education. Meanwhile, the state has thrown only crumbs to public schools while it has been sending millions of dollars to fund vouchers for private and religious schools, expand charter schools, and refused to honor the court’s decisions.
The state’s majority Republican Party is pushing a national, well-funded agenda to undermine, discredit and defund public schools while promoting and diverting funding to vouchers. They are working hard to starve and destroy our public school system.
It is crucial to confront our elected officials, especially Republicans. Demand adequate public school funding. Tell them to follow the court decisions. Urge Gov. Ayotte to call a special session of the Legislature to pass adequate public school funding following the recent Rand court decision. Attend town halls, call, send letters and most importantly, vote for pro-public school candidates at every office level.
Care deeply, be courageous, stand up, speak out and take action. Public schools are vital for democracy and the future of our children.
Linda Tanner