Tribune Opinion: Funding for schools woefully inadequate |

Tribune Opinion: Funding for schools woefully inadequate

Steve Conklin, general superintendent for FCI Constructors, walks through the vast open space that will be the gym for Prairie Heights Middle School in Evans.

Our edit board in the last few years has coaxed, cajoled and even criticized our residents to support Greeley's schools.

Now we wonder if we were picking on the wrong people.

As our Sunday story shows, no amount of financial support from Greeley's residents would make our school district equal to the state's richer districts, such as Boulder Valley.

The state funding for school districts is woefully inadequate, and because of this, it's up to residents to plug the holes. Residents can vote to increase the funding a district receives by increasing their property tax. They can also pay for capital improvements and new buildings through bond issues.

Residents in Boulder Valley, predictably, have approved nearly $1 billion in bond money for capital construction and feted its district with property tax increases every time they've been asked to do so.

Greeley, on the other hand, hasn't approved a property tax increase, not even one, and just approved an $8.2 million bond for the new Prairie Heights Middle School, the only significant bond issue in 13 years. And that money wouldn't even pay for the roof. A $21.8 million grant covered the rest. Greeley has $350 million in capital improvement needs. Boulder Valley, in other words, is awash in money thanks to its rich residents, and Greeley has to check its couch cushions once a week.

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What's even worse is property tax increases are, of course, based on property valuations. So when Boulder Valley residents approve a tax increase, they get a lot more bang for their bucks. Greeley could approve an increase 10 times the amount of Boulder Valley, and it still wouldn't match them.

Finally, tax increases always hit the poor the hardest because they take a much larger percentage of their income. Poorer residents are worried about basic things like heat and food and finding a place to live. It's not as if Greeley residents don't care about their schools. We honestly wonder if they simply don't have the paychecks to help them.

Because of this, Greeley's district falls far behind in technology, schools and simple things such as textbooks and other learning materials while it serves a population that needs its schools for basic services, let alone a good education. This also forces Greeley's school board to skimp on pay raises, lowering morale and driving good teachers to other districts. And yet the state expects Greeley schools to perform just as well in testing as Boulder Valley.

It's ridiculous.

Clearly the state needs to act this year to make school funding equal. The Republicans are in charge of the state Senate and Democrats hold both the House and the Governor's Office. This presents an opportunity to everyone to step up and fix this tragic imbalance in the state's funding formula.

We think it's OK to put some of the burden on residents. Richer residents who want to pay more to support their school districts should be allowed to do so. Greeley shouldn't be excused from supporting its schools either. However, lawmakers must adjust the formula based on income levels in a district.

Poorer families live in tough neighborhoods, drive unreliable cars and sometimes face a sparse dinner table. School should be one of the few times in our kids' lives when they feel like they belong to a society that wants to give them a chance for a better future.

­— The Tribune Editorial Board