I believe that we, as members of society, have certain responsibilities to our citizens. Education of our children is one of the most important of those responsibilities. I believe this so strongly that I have dedicated the last two years of my life to being the president of the PTA at Juan Cabrillo Elementary. Did it benefit my children? In many ways it did. I believe that my children learned some valuable lessons because of the behavior I modeled, but that was certainly a by-product. I tried to do my best to ensure that in decisions I made, all of the children of our school benefited. I am proud to be but one of many such parents in our school district.
I have read the contrary opinion espoused in this column that it is up to the parents to pay for their children’s education. Our duty as citizens, no matter our personal choices, is to provide quality public education for all, from those who are very wealthy, to those who don’t have much. The very foundation of the American dream is quality public education for all. Without good public education, the American dream is just another commodity to be purchased by the rich.
Ask any high school teacher and they will tell you that the children who struggle with school, left unaided become disenfranchised, angry and destructive when they reach their teenage years. So we pay for their cost in the form of damage to property, to life and the cost of incarceration. If we instead put our resources now into education for all, we reap the benefit of nurturing productive members of society.
Every child is deserving of a good public education. As stated by Justice Leland DeGrasse of the Supreme Court of the State of New York (a state, by the way, at the top of academic spending and achievement): “The amount of melanin in a student’s skin, the home country of her antecedents, the amount of money in the family bank account, are not the inexorable determinants of academic success. The evidence …demonstrates that these negative life experiences can be overcome by public schools with sufficient resources well deployed.”
The history of public education in Malibu has been successful. Although our state (through the taxes paid by its citizens) provides a meager foundation financially, we have been graced by leaders of excellence, who have taken what little we have, and have molded the talent of our dedicated and talented teachers and created excellence in education. Consider our Malibu High School, a California Distinguished School or the continually rising test scores of every one of our elementary schools. As outgoing president of Juan Cabrillo Elementary School, I invite you to visit our happy school where children of all abilities, races, ethnic groups, and income levels work side by side. I guarantee that you will be impressed.
Excellent education comes from excellent teachers and involved parents, but it cannot be done cheaply. Although our state is in a financial crisis, we have an opportunity and a responsibility to ensure that our children will not be neglected. Parents, I implore you, exercise your right and privilege to vote on June 3, or before, by absentee ballot. All citizens of Malibu, put your faith and your votes in the future of our community. Vote “yes” on Measure S.
Beth Pugh