The CocoNuts Robotics "Our Take" Blog http://blog.fusd1robotics.org/ourtake The Stories and Opinions of the Members of the CocoNuts Robotics Team Sun, 24 Jan 2010 19:51:43 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.1 The Flagstaff Unified School District Budget Override http://blog.fusd1robotics.org/ourtake/2010/01/the-flagstaff-unified-school-district-budget-override/ http://blog.fusd1robotics.org/ourtake/2010/01/the-flagstaff-unified-school-district-budget-override/#comments Fri, 15 Jan 2010 17:37:28 +0000 Vitas http://blog.fusd1robotics.org/ourtake/?p=4 As most Flagstaff residents know, the Flagstaff Unified School District is under severe financial stress at the moment due to declining tax revenues and severe Arizona state education budget cuts. On March 9th Flagstaff voters will be voting on maintaining a “budget override” for FUSD, which is essentially a slight increase in property taxes for property-owners in the Flagstaff Unified School District boundaries. While many may decry a tax-increase in a recession, if the citizens of Flagstaff wish to maintain things like AP classes and art in their schools then there is no other option. FUSD is already preparing to close a high school, two middle schools, and two elementary schools, so there are very little options for saving money left. With the double whammy of less revenues, and state cuts there is only so much a school district can do. Arizona is already 52nd in per-pupil school funding, below DC, Guam, and every other US state.

I ask you to please vote YES on March 9th for the FUSD Budget Override. Without it Flagstaff students can expect to go to schools that lack art, music, PE, AP, and honors classes. In addition they can expect successful programs like the Coconino Institute of Technology to disappear due to lack of funding. They can expect to use out-of-date technology and archaic textbooks in their daily learning. They can expect to see less after-school activities like the FIRST Lego League. And they can expect to see forty kids per class, with classrooms seeming more like lecture halls than actual places of learning.

Any members of the CocoNuts who disagree with my viewpoint have free reign to post their opinion on this blog. But it’s basically unanimous, as no student or teacher wants to see their school robbed of opportunity and hope by people who dislike paying pennies a day for the well-being of the next generation.

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