Letter to Members of State Parliament

I sent this letter to all Members of State Parliament. I will keep a record of who responds and I will be interested to hear anyone who will stand up and say that this is good public policy.


Dear Member of State Parliament

As an officer of a Public Primary School Governing Council, in the Adelaide suburbs, I am appalled that the Labor State Government is planning
to make our children pay for your government's so called efficiency dividends. Why should public education and student learning again suffer at the hands of
politicians and bureaucrats?

Is the South Australian Labor Party plan for Public School Education, Dumb and Dumber (Better Go Private). How can members of a Labor Party philosophically support policies that are by default undermining public schools and making more people seriously consider private schools.

It is my understanding that currently the State Government is proposing to remove $72 Million from the Public Schools in the next three years. Based upon information provided by our Principal, the impact is
anticipated to be $20,000 to $30,000 per year. It is my understanding that similar cuts, proportional to the size of the school will face all public schools in South Australia.

The State Government trumpets South Australia as a state supportive of
education and the development of skills for the new economy. In what way does cutting funding for public education fit into this plan. Is this a back door plan to force kids into Private Schools or enormous Super Schools?

At the same time as supporting
huge tax breaks to private US Universities, you and your
government are stealing from the most valuable resource that this
state has, children. How much more do you want to take out of class room resources and support staff. Indeed, why shouldn't our kids share in the prosperity of a booming economy after the years of denial brought about by the financial
stringencies that followed the state bank disaster?

These cuts will be felt most dramatically in areas of most value to
our children in teaching resources and programmes. It makes me very
mad that you would support this. Public schools are already
underfunded and need more resources, not less

In plain terms, for our school this could mean increases in school fees, reductions in Guided Reading to one day a week, no new computing upgrades, reductions in Front Office Support, reductions in maintenance budgets, reductions in Library Budgets, withdrawal of subsidies for activities and excursions, increases in School Fees, reduction of budgets for classrooms and other discretionary spending. The list is very long. If you are comfortable with this, then do nothing. If not, please do something. These types of impacts will affect all children who attend Public Schools anywhere in South Australia. All schools are facing the same types of cuts.

The current back down that has made on the proposed cuts on the Work Cover Levy is only a small part of the overall proposed reductions to schools funds and while good, should not have been proposed in the first place.

As a professional working in Adelaide, I regularly see how difficult it is to find suitably qualified and trained employees. I fail to see how reducing funding for public education helps to turn this around.

So my question to you as a Member of the State Labor Government and presumably as a supporter of these cuts in funding for public education, can you please tell me, my family and all the other families with children in State Public Schools in South Australia, why you support draconian cuts in funding for Public School Education.

I have listened to Dr Jane Lomax Smith, the Minister for Education try to defend the indefensible and am not convinced that a good argument has been made for implementing these cuts.

I am just looking for somebody to stand up and explain to me why this is such a good idea. I can then explain to my kids when their programmes and resources are cut back.

Make Public Education exempt from your budget cuts and 'efficiency dividends'.

Shame on this State Labor Government.

Don't steal from kids.

I am happy to provide a street address and telephone number if you would like to communicate with me in another way.

You are also welcome to take a look at my blog that I developed to focus on this issue. I would welcome your feedback.

http://salaborlollyjarthieves.blogspot.com

Thank you for your time

Colin Campbell