Imagine Greater Tucson 2010-11 Phase I Community Conversation and Survey Statements Related to Sufficient Federal, State and local funding for education and schools Family, community, and governmental support for schools and education

1	$2.6 billion was spent on illegal aliens, would that help fund El Rio?
2	12th in county ranked on per capita spending
3	4 years without on-time payments from the state so the schools have to borrow money
4	A new Census Bureau report ranks Arizona 49th in spending on education. Tucson needs to do a much better job on improving the educational levels of our children and insisting on getting a better and greater return on our educational investment.
5	AZ does not place a high priority on education ... our funding per pupil is horribly low.
6	AZ education is terribly underfunded compared to other states. As a city or county we should allocate more dollars to make up for our state's failure to properly educate our youth.
7	AZ ranks at the bottom of the pile for Education funding - Fix It!!
8	Affordable healthcare at El Rio/St. Elizabeth (they are facing funding challenges) = lack of awareness
9	All public schools are poorly funded, and as an employer I can tell you first-hand we are graduating a generation of idiots who are ill-prepared for the 21st century.
10	Although my children are grown so I don't have to worry about the quality they are getting, the education in Arizona, and therefore Tucson, is embarrassing. To be ranked 49 out of 50 states is appalling. Education, of course, is critical to individuals, to local industry, and to the city's (and state's) future.
11	Arizona has one of the worst education ratings in the country and there is no priority given to education funding...This is a MUST if we want to see a brighter future, and it is embarrassing that it has reached such a dismal state.
12	Arizona is 49 out of 50 in education funding
13	Arizona ranks very low in funding for education, very high for prisons
14	Artists are what make this community thrive, yet public funding is critically low, placing a heavy burden on private donors and the artists themselves. As a community we need to place artists in a position of higher financial priority-- think Austin and Portland...
15	As a former public school teacher, I feel that the schools in this area are not funded adequately to keep pace with making sure the children are prepared for the future.
16	As a teacher for TUSD, I see daily how limited resources and lack of community involvement negatively impact our children.
17	As someone who wants to be a teacher, it pains me to see the shape that schools in Tucson are in. Funding must be improved for education
18	Being at the bottom for healthcare and education is embarrassing
19	Better funding and respect for public schools.
20	Better funding for education
21	Better funding for things that matter
22	Better school funding especially southwest/west Tucson
23	Better schools with better funding
24	Budget over-ride did not pass.
25	By any ranking Arizona's and by extension Tucson schools in the bottom 10. It is only in school districts for the wealthy, i.e. Catalina Foothills that scores and graduation rates improve
26	Can we raise taxes to support our schools?
27	Colleges and K-12 need more funding
28	Committ more funding to our public school system
29	Community needs to know how its resources are used
30	Consolate all schools district to one district, one tax rate. Improve educational opportunities and properly fund
31	Cut UofA in half
32	Cuts to education funding are the cause of a myriad of social problems. Charter schools have no oversight.
33	Disconnect between schools in a small district and some schools really hurting financially
34	Duplication of city funding and non-profits. Overlapping= too much staff and less goes to intended recipients
35	Education (differences in funding based on demographics)
36	Education districts and funding
37	Education funding
38	Education funding is embarrassing - increase funding
39	Education is generally very good but businesses need to invest in public education much more than they are
40	Education is important and needs to be valued when budgets are made.
41	Education is not as much of a priority for this state as I would like it to be based on the drop in funding that we have seen since living here. This is very important to me. We subsidize for the lack in Tucson's school systems by exposing our children to more educational acitivities on our family time. However, I am sure some families can't do this which will only hurt our state in the long run.
42	Education is so important to the future of our community. We really need to push our legislature into providing appropriate funding for our schools
43	Education is the foundation of the entire society
44	Education is the future and Arizona obviously doesn't care about it
45	Education is the future of Tucson. The already poorly funded public education system is getting bled dry by unproven charter schools that have little accountability. Disparities in quality of schools and school districts is also very troubling.
46	Education is the most important factor in having a successful community and the system in Tucson is lacking in support, funding and performance. This negatively impacts recruitment of top level companies to our region.
47	Education is the root of sustainability - should invest in it
48	Education needs greater prominence and increased funding
49	Education of higher levels must be a priority where we rank 50th! Adult education of dropouts need to be funded. I would like the taxes of the rich to fund education. What happened to prop 301?
50	Education support and funding
51	Education system - poorly funded
52	Education system - we need more funding and support
53	Education. Control of school district administration/money.
54	Educational funding
55	Educational funding equals quality of life
56	Educational institutions, particlulary public systems, are not supported or funded in a way that yields quality student achievement. This impacts economic opportunties and local businesses ability to attract and retain a highly skilled work force. Local students who are the most talented and skilled leave the community for better careers elsewhere.
57	Emphasis on funding education and more respect for educators
58	Equality and funding issues for schools
59	Even though I am a conservative Republican, I am appalled by the cuts to our education system. These cuts will damage our economic rebound ability for years to come.
60	Every child needs to have resources so that they will enter school ready to learn, every school child should have the support they need to succeed in school, every adult should have opportunities to learn and be able to find meaningful work that pays a living wage. I want to live in a community that values education and provides eveyone access to learning.
61	Everyone thinks there school is special but really none are that great. Teacher turnover is extremely high due to poor wages. High acheivement is not valued. Each year the classes in the public schools get dumbed down - especially in so called good school districts like District 16. No qualified teachers to teach advance topics in high school courses. Schools get worse every year.
62	Excellence in educating our youth (and beyond) is a pre-cursor to all aspects of future prosperity, success and positive development. An educated population ensures that the future will be bright and meaningful (and compassionate). If additional funding is needed--what better way to spend our dollars.
63	Financial funding of education
64	Focus on better allocation of education resources
65	For retirees who don't have kids in the system, they don't care & don't want to fund it. What they don't understand is that every uneducated dropout that we produce increases the possibility of those displaced people pursuing crime as a 'career.'
66	Fund Education
67	Fund education first and foremost. Our children need and deserve the opportunity to be educated so they can participate in our society with knowledge and effectivenes
68	Fund the university
69	Funding and support for public education
70	Funding for Education
71	Funding for The University of Arizona and Pima College
72	Funding for education.
73	Funding for our schools is a disgrace. We are among the least funded states for education and we are talking about cutting additional funds.
74	Funding for public education � higher priority
75	Funding for public schools
76	Funding for schools
77	Funding is not the responsibility of our local community. But it is what I think most needs improvement. We no longer adequately fund education in Arizona. Without proper funding, we will not keep the caring, interesting, productive people who make Tucson a good place to live. Our children will grow up and move away. We will have job market and no sustainable, healthy growth. Personally, I want to be able to honestly tell people with children that they should move here or stay here and put their children in public school. There are lots of very capable professional educators offering a variety of successful teaching methods and curriculums, but without basic resources, they can't do their jobs successfully. This matters to me as I see people I care about and/or respect leave Tucson or not come to Tucson because of this problem.
78	Funding is not well-used. TUSD is too big, not well-run; it is a laughing stock
79	Give a high priority to funding and other support to both K-12 and college/university/trade school education
80	Got rid of funding support for GED
81	Graduation rate lowest in the country and they cut funding for education
82	Greater funding for public education
83	Greater investment in progressive public education
84	Having been in other districts (out of state), I found AZ. schools very lacking. More money spent on schools and less on developers would be a first step. Pay GOOD teachers a living wage.
85	Help our schools. They need more money - give unique opportunities, outdoor education, planned parenthood
86	How can a state with as much wealth as we have, be at the bottom of the barrow with what we spend on children...education, medical/mental health.
87	How can you have good schools when charters are taking funding and competition?
88	How is it that we are paying more for schools, but getting less? Is it because of charter schools?
89	I am an educator and a parent and education should be funded/supported to ensure success for EVERY student
90	I am an educator and have a great interest in the education issues that are taking place here such as Ethnic Studies. TUSD needs to be held accountable and perhaps when their funding is cut due to their own actions, they will have to make decisions based on what parents and the community expect instead of a political agenda for La Raza. Education in the Tucson area leaves much to be desired.
91	I am not happy with the public education standards and lack of budgetary support from legislators.
92	I care about future generations. I believe better education will create better safety, better training for future jobs, and more happiness among families and therefore will impact the entire community. It is currently underfunded. Classes need to be smaller. There are public schools of unequal quality in different neighborhoods of different incomes.
93	I do not have children, but I believe that the future of our country depends upon the successful education of our youth. AZ. is at the bottom of the nation for education dollars - and the US is only in the middle of the international list of well-educated young people. Shame on us! We also need to increase adult literacy.
94	I do not have children, but they are our future and having tucson continually ranked near the bottom in education, the fact that we are cutting our universities and serices to K-12 is apalling and can only have deliterious effects on the furture of our region. Our school shave such potential for being community centers
95	I don't feel the State of Arizona has given Education the attention or budget it deserves and frankly needs. Since Arizona is either 49 or 50th in the country we can only improve!
96	I find it really sad how low of a priority education is in Tucson and Arizona. I would raise taxes and make sure that schools are properly funded. There are some things that deserve proper funding, and education is definitely a worth-while investment in the future. I would never want to raise a family in Tucson, because I would be afraid of how far behind my children would fall relative to children growing up in places that make education a priority. Also funding cuts to the University of Arizona are terribly short-sighted. Short-selling Tucson's future is the last thing people should do.
97	I have 5 children!
98	I have kids. There is not much funding and us parents always don't
99	I have three children, and the choices they have in school, the pay for their teachers, the quality of teachers and class sizes are all disappointing.
100	I have young children and know that if we don't put money in education we will just pay out the difference, and then some, to prisons and welfare programs. Let's educate people please!
101	I know this falls to the state to decide funding, but Tucson schools need more to work with. Students are missing out on oportunities just because of a lack of money, and educators work 70 hours weeks for a salary less than low level retail management.
102	I like the ability to support Christian education through the AZ tax credit program so that my grandkids can recieve the kind of education which I believe will grow them into good citizens and supporters of family oriendted values and activites.
103	I taught for 31 years in Fairfax County, Virginia. I'm appalled at the low bar set for education here. Teacher pay is incredibly low. I realize that's state-dictated, however, and the legislators here seem to be content with a constituency of the uneducated
104	I think even though state budgets continue to be lowered we can/should do more to support schools
105	I think we need to provide our students with a better education but with the budgets being cut all the time, schools are trying to do so much with too little.
106	I work for the University. I believe in public education and in spending more money on our public schools not to improve test scores but to improve the quality of life, sense of citizenship, and critical thinking of our young people. Arizona has unique problems and we can better prepare the future to deal with those problems with a quality education. We simply don't spend enough money on our schools. I'm tired of being ranked 47th in the nation.
107	I work in education and have for years. Snap out of it, like it or not our youth are our future, we need to do something about being 50th in the nation!
108	I would like to see all schools receive equal shares in funding no matter their tax base.
109	I would put a lot more money into the Tucson schools and education.
110	I would put more emphasis, money and resources in educating children and young adults. Offer programs for those who are not succeeding it in the schools. Problem solve with other school systems in the U.S. to learn what works and implement new programs.
111	I'm accustomed to life in a larger city than Tucson. For it's size, Tucson has a good selection and quality of cultural activities and events, i.e., theater, music, films, discussion groups. Some of these are endangered, for example, the University by the State's short sightedness on supporting education and cultural activities that attract business with higher paying salaries.
112	I'm being flippant of course, but I'm in the UA's Masters Degree program in Education. I'm going to be a High School Science teacher, and when I think about my career it's very hard to see a future for me here what with AZ being among the bottom 5 in the country in terms of spending per student.
113	I'm devastated that this huge research institution that could do so much to enlighten our community is being financially gutted. I'd also like to see more community involvement
114	I'm tired of AZ being on the bottom of the list for educational excellence. One reason is because retirees vote down propositions and overrides for schools, etc., because they have already raised their kids. Another reason is because we have a large immigrant population that doesn't even try to learn English.
115	If the community ever wants to have more good paying jobs it must place more emphasis on education and it must provide the resources to support education. Charter schools are not a solution. There must be far less emphasis on athletics in schools and the university
116	Improve all education system - money and active pre-K through college
117	Improve funding for education
118	Improve funding for the entire educational system.
119	Improve private/public funding opportunities
120	Improve services for the poor and improve education funding
121	In-classroom spending low - showing kids we don't value education; makes businesses not want to come here (affects economy)
122	Increase funding for education
123	Increase funding for education.
124	Increase funding for schools
125	Increase the proportion of property taxes dedicated to public education. This does not include charter schools.
126	Invest in K-12 Education
127	Invest in education
128	Investment in higher education as well as K-12
129	It is very difficult for my husband and I as he teaches in a public school here and sees and feels first hand the budget cuts that are continuing to go on. These cuts affect the livelihood of our children directly, and it doesn't have to be. I wish that Tucson could prioritize education in a real way, by allocating enough money somehow to fulfill the education needs of our children. Frankly, its downright scary what is going on. I suggest looking around at what other towns in other states are doing, and try some new tactics.
130	It seems the state legislature is intent on dismantling education, but without smart investment in education and workforce development, Tucson will stagnate. Community development needs to be coupled with economic development goals so all boats are raised.
131	It's not just funding and politicians - parents could have the biggest effect
132	It's not that people don't care, they just can't afford it because of the economy.
133	Its pathetic. We are ranked #49 in the nation. And they keep slashing funding. Where would any of us be without a good education - - on the system - - or in jail.
134	K-12 Education funding
135	Lack of funding as a state - we are 50th in funding (sometimes 49th)
136	Lack of funding for schools
137	Lack of funds for infrastructure and road building
138	Lack of legislative support for secondary and higher education
139	Lack of support and resources for individual classes in the classroom
140	Larger tax base and more opportunities for fund raising for non-profits.
141	Lots to do
142	Low funding for public education
143	MY tax money is paying for planning projects that I don't want (and I suspect I am not alone). Rio Nuevo has become an industry of its own, paying outside contractors money that we need to be spending on education and police/fire services.
144	Make sure that all schools in the Tucson area are equally strong and supported by all so that every child can have a good start in life
145	Many of us see and even interact with the homeless population in Tucson on a regular basis. Many of these men and women are veterans, have substance abuse problems, or struggle with mental illness. If we invested more funding and resources in supporting this population, we could decrease the number of people in the emergency rooms and in prison. This would benefit us all in the long-run as we would see a decrease in crime, and an increase in the number of people contributing positively to the community by working and paying taxes.
146	Maybe this is biased, but I like having my school an important focus of Tucson
147	Money budgetted to education/quality of public schools
148	Money for education at a state and local level College, HS, elementary, teacher pay
149	Money invested in education (k-12 especially)
150	Money spent on children.
151	More attention must be given to public schools, K-12 through college....increased funding, efficiency, etc.
152	More attention to the public schools, especially better funding.
153	More funding for K-12 education
154	More funding for education at all levels
155	More funding for education primary, secondary and post secondary
156	More funding for schools
157	More funding for the arts
158	More funding needs to be put into education
159	More money for education
160	More money for schools
161	More money for schools/education
162	More money has to be spent on public education.
163	More money isn't the solution, groups are always so focused on spending
164	More money needs to go to public schools and charter schools shoud be banned!!
165	More money on education
166	More money to pay teachers
167	More of a state issue, but continuing to rank 49th or 50th each year is getting old...
168	More resources for education in poor communities
169	More state funding for education
170	More support and resources for education
171	More teachers and education for our children
172	My kids school district has to make-do with less money every year. Our voters rarely approve increased funding
173	My word! Where did these nasty people come from?! Disagree, but take your hatefulness, racism and other prejudices elsewhere. We need to fund education, support all diversity, support the arts and culture.
174	Need stronger support for public schools
175	Need to continue funding education
176	Need to ensure adequate funding and improve the quality of education
177	Needs so much more support. Funding/programs being cut
178	Observing services cut, schools operating on a shoe string
179	Of course everyone wants better education. Schools produce our most valuable resource, talented, knowledgeable workers. I realize that school funding is often a state level obstacle, and that more money alone isn't the answer anyway. Communities that truly value education can be hard to replicate, but I believe we need to do everything we can at the local and regional level to bring quality education to our children.
180	One has to promote PUBLIC education by more funding and better PUBLIC schools. When schools are highly rated it will help attract businesses. Good teachers WILL NOT work here because lack of support, financial, conditions and facilties. It is a disgrace!!!!
181	Our children will not be able to compete for college slots or jobs because the funding for schools is continually being cut and the newspaper reports shortening the school year to save money.
182	Our community leaders are reactionary and overly conservative, failing to have vision for the future. Our schools flounder, our state parks are not funded, the leaders go for the bucks without thinking about the impact on communities.
183	Our future depends on education and I feel we are falling short becayse of lack of funding.
184	Our future is in having an educated workforce and educated population/voters
185	Our graduation rates are atrocious. Our funding for education is too low. The beaurocracy of TUSD is ridiculous. Our youth are suffering from our legislative mistakes and our inability to identify creative solutions. We teach to the test instead of teaching them skills and abilities they will need post-graduation. It's a mess.
186	Our lack of funding towards public education is unfair and will hurt employers relocating to Tucson.
187	Our most valuable asset is our children and young people, and the lack of education funding keeps them from developing to their highest potential
188	Our priorities are a bit messed up when we cut kindergarten, GED, and higher Ed, yet cut taxes for the rich. This will be the one thing that can prevent us from really moving into the future and having an economic recovery.
189	Our public schools are seriously underfunded, and we are betraying our public responsibility to younger generation who depend on public education to develop marketable skills. Ultimately, this undermines the entire economy of the region.
190	Our schools need to be adequately funded so that parents and other community members are not left to do the fund raising every year.
191	Our state legislature keeps cutting our kids education to fix their budget and is continually cutting services to the women and poor. I want my grandkids to get the same opportunities and education as I did in the Midwest. To be at the bottom of the barrel for education spending is horrendous. We are condemning future generations to poverty.
192	Parochial schools want tax vouchers which drains money from public schools
193	Particularly given our state legislatures refusal to maintain educational support, even given our current dismal situation, we need to find innovative ways of improving our local schools with a special focus on K-12 education.
194	Pay teachers more. If we are to have better education and better teachers we must pay them more.
195	Pima county should not be in the business of providing urban services. Our schools should not be funded by State Land sales. Both systems work against our current economic base.
196	Plenty of funding for tech and sports even with lack of funding
197	Political environment affects schools through funding
198	Poor funding for library materials
199	Promotion of k-12 education funding
200	Provide more educational opportunities at little or no cost
201	Provides funding for transportation, recreation, crime prevention, and the education system
202	Public ed funding cuts and the continued funding of unsuccessful charter schools are decimating our childrens' futures.
203	Public education and the arts would be better funded.
204	Public education needs to be supported with real dollars by this community. It is the long term foundation of economic development.
205	Public schools are very poor
206	Public schools here are underfunded and under-appreciated.
207	Put more resources into education.
208	Puts the arts, music, and gym back in school
209	Raise the bar, raise the pay, raise the community support and hopefully raise the outcomes
210	Rather than accept the current state of education we need to be outraged and act. I'm speaking K- graduate school. We do not need to be at the bottom nationally. We can do better and we should. As a community we can set higher standards and look at alternative methods of funding.
211	Redo our tax system to change the support for education and bring more of the unicorporated urban area into an incorporated area in order to improve our share of State tax revenue.
212	Reduce the ultra conservative retoric and resulting laws that hurt education funding, give rights to automatic weapons owners.
213	Reductions in education (funding)
214	Reductions in education at all levels and the declining quality due to increases in class sizes, reductions in course offerings, reductions in arts education, loss of qualified faculty at all levels creates a gap for our community which will be difficult to fill. Not investing in the future means we have no future. I have lived in AZ for 36 years. I want to remain but may follow my adult children to leave and never return because the short-sightedness of the priorities in our community may leave me no choice.
215	Resentment when people without children pay taxes or by legislation
216	Sales tax for education was passed, but went into the general fund
217	School funding
218	Schools and education need more funding and support
219	Schools need more funding, K-12, higher education
220	Schools needs better equity
221	Schools-need to fund them, students are our future.
222	Society does not want to invest $$ - won't raise taxes
223	Specifically supporting our public schools by connecting with resources in the community private public partnerships, university, and $
224	Spend money on education!!!
225	State + federal funding =good foundation
226	State Trust lands are a big part of the landscape that is important to me, and revenue supports the schools.
227	State funding for education
228	State has to put more money to it - �we� value education
229	Students and people are serving time and spending much money when there has to be a better way to help students
230	Sufficient education funding
231	Support our educational institutions financially
232	TUSD in particular seems unreliable in providing quality education. With my two kids, we sent one to private school and the other to a district with open-enrollment. I know this is partly a state funding issue, but other districts seem to do better than TUSD with the same funding.
233	TUSD is a mess � education needs to be a higher priority (this is a state / country-wide issue, not limited to Tucson / Pima County)
234	Tax dollars . Arizona is so far down the list with educating our children Stop the waste.
235	Teachers are not paid well in poor areas
236	Teachers make the difference � not just $$
237	The amount of money that is being spent on educating our youth.
238	The children are our future. Arizona ranks 49th in funding of education. Our current legislators have voting records showing they do not support education.
239	The children are our future. Yet Arizona is ranked 50th in the funding of education.
240	The defunding of education by the State threatens to put higher education out of reach to those who need it most. K-12 education needs to innovate away from high-cost infrastructure and put more focus on applied learning that results in employment and the ability to support a family.
241	The education system (lack of support and funding)
242	The education system in this community is a disaster. We have the least funding for education as a state than anywhere else in the country and it shows. Our students are being passed along into the next grade for which they are not prepared. Good teachers are being fired due to lack of funds and therefor classes are immensly too big. I will for sure not be raising my children here. Once I have children and they are at the age to enter school I will move to another state, if I haven't already.
243	The educational system in Tucson is lacking, in funding and in expectations. I want my children to be encouraged to pursue courses of study beyond the bare minimum. I'm disgusted by the prevailing attitude that 'You only need _____ to get into college.'
244	The funding of charter schools needs to be addressed, they are unlicensed an unsupervised and take funding away from public schools. 32% of students transfer back from charter to public schools.
245	The future economic strength of the Tucson region is critically dependent of quality educational systems. Although funding for schools is heavily dependent on State decisions, we need to work hard to create new educational opportunities and to build on those that seem to be the most successful.
246	The future of our children and economy are seriously affected by the cuts in our funding (reference #1)
247	The local schools in general, and TUSD in particular, are way behind the curve. It's not just lack of money/support from the Legislature - the scandalous handling of information systems shows that there has been a history of incompetence at the top.
248	The loss of state funding for education has put the entire ecomony and health of the state at risk for failure.
249	The overall quality level of the schools in Tucson is very poor. We need to put an emphasis on good teachers and stop throwing money down the same failed programs.
250	The public school systems in Arizona are so very bad. We need to funnel more money into them.
251	The quaiity of education in Tucson must be outstanding and not mediocre. It also has to be balanced and broad. To atract talent we need to offer good education. I am very dissapointd with budget cuts in education. Discontinuing art and or physical education is a shame.
252	The schools are being asked to do so much with ever dwindling resources. It's neither fair nor wise.
253	The schools are dismal. Teachers are poorly paid, not enough resources are invested and standards are too low. The norm should be what they are teaching in the G.A.T.E. program. The other children are being shortchanged. Arts, music and PE need to be daily activities.
254	The state MUST make public education a priority and give necessary funding to our schools! It is essential that the curriculum teaches students to challenge themselves and aspire to higher ambitions, instead of continually teaching to the 'weakest links' in the classroom in order to pass the AIMS test. Arizona will crash and burn if our youth isn't prepared to assume responsibility for Arizona's future.
255	The state does not invest in education - many people are unaware of issues. an uneducated population creates problems. many tucsonans are apathetic and do not get involved. government is run by special interests.
256	The state legislature has made it clear they do not support education. if we are going to prepare our young people for tomorrows challenges, we need to commit to funding their learning throuhg local revenue streams
257	The university brings in concerts, plays, and other events that probably wouldn't come to town otherwise.
258	The very things I love most about our schools are getting shut down while experienced teachers are being laid off to cut expenses. There doesn't seem to be any thinking toward the future and the benefits of having top rated school districts - they bring in higher paying jobs and more educated adults while reducing crime rates.
259	There are many good teachers and students ,but what can we expect when we do not give them financial support. Our kids are our future leaders. We need smaller classes.
260	There are not enough teachers and class sizes are too large. Teachers are under paid and their salaries need to be competative to attract new people to the profession.
261	There is no funding in schools for librarians, nurses, music programs, etc.
262	There was a feeling of community that Parks and Rec and Adult Ed, etc. fostered before the massive budget cuts.
263	There's little financial support locally for the arts, with all of the cuts to TPAC. Arts education makes kids smarter and better students, yet it's getting harder for me to provide my arts education programs because of funding cuts. This is a huge quality of life issue that won't hit the radar of the general public until it's too late-- until the money has completely dried up, and people like me have moved away.
264	This applies to all of Arizona, but I have noticed the deficit of educational opportunities from certain schools over others because of schools being or not being located in wealthy regions.
265	This is personally important to me because I deeply am committed to education. It is the foundation which will help humans grow to be wonderful shining beings dedicated to human rights for all. I believe Tucson needs to raise taxes to support education - our future is at stake.
266	This is the future of this state and country. Stop cutting taxes at the expense of our schools.
267	Tired of budget cuts to education, health care, solar developments when prisons get a ton of money and the governor takes care of her crony buddies and not the state
268	Too many classes at the U are giant classes taught by graduate students. Arizona should fund a world class university - Arizona would reap the rewards.
269	Too many school districts that waste too much money on administration rather than education.
270	Too many schoolboards have eliminated librarians and teachers are trying to cover the school's library one day a week in order to keep it open. Every member of out city council should volunteer somewhere every week.
271	Too much money is spent on frivolous things
272	Tragic low levels of literacy coupled with poverty and weak education funding leads to crime and high needs for social services and taxes.
273	Try to mitigate the harmful effects of ultra-right wing politcal insanity that takes funding from schools, safety net, etc.
274	Tucson has a thriving arts scene, but emerging artist could use more support in terms of materials, housing, and funding. avenues to public funding are often not available to individual artists, or groups without 501c3 status.
275	Tucson is a lovely town where our families have lived since the late 40's/early 50's. We grew up here and raised our children here. We would not encourage our well-educated children to relocate and raise their families here because the job opportunities are so limited; the public educational system is so ill-funded; the community is so fractured. This is a shame! We have three generations of history in and years of service to Tucson yet our children, who were born and raised in Tucson, must find their lives and careers elsewhere because the economy is so limited and the public educational system for their children is so poor. A community cannot flourish if its children must leave to make a life. In-migrants have a positive riole, but when there is a constant bleed of the people who grew up in a place, something is lost!
276	Tucson will never flourish until it adequately values education at all levels and develops mechanisms to fund high quality public K-12 education, to support the community college system and to strengthen the funding base of the UA. If the state won't do this adequately, we in Pima County must figure out ways to do so.
277	Tucson's public school system is very weak. There is not a lot of support for kids who need it. There is not nearly enough funding to make sure each child has what is needed at school to succeed.
278	U of A, PCC and schools such as Catalina High School, University High School, and the Vail school system, although they are all now being starved to death. How we are to invest in a strong economic future for the region without supporting them, I do not know. Where will new jobs and trained employees come from.
279	We are a Math Science shool and much of our technology is out dated. We need to represent what we are labelled as. This makes it very hard to keep up as Teachers when we do not have the access to things that are important for the classroom. Example Vail district laptops for all students..why do we not have this?
280	We are losing out children because our schools cann't take cre of their many needs. Either we put our money where our heart is, or we will lose.
281	We are the new Mississippi - 49th in education funding
282	We are the worst funded education system in the country, yet our local public schools find a way to be in the middle of the states in their testing.
283	We can't attract the best teachers with the low salaries offered. Once upon a time, teachers made a living wage!
284	We can't eat our young any longer without risking everything that makes us strong. Teachers aren't the problem, parents aren't the problem, funding isn't the problem. EVERYTHING is a part of the problem. We need to work together and stop the finger pointing. I have two baby granddaughters. How are they going to be able to go to college?
285	We have a 7 year old (2nd grade) and 4 year old (pre-K). We came from Northern Virginia. Education was a priority for the community. So many cuts to our already struggling system. Title 1 School receive additional funding that our 'non-needy' school don't qualify for, but the current budget doesn't provide the schools the support, training teachers need.
286	We have a choice to support and encourage education and all that goes with it or see our economy deteroiate along with the social fiber.
287	We keep cutting everything out of education
288	We need a new dialogue
289	We need to fight for bigger budgets dedicated to education. Look at Nationwide stats to defend this argument.
290	We need to help others make the connection between how we fund education and how it affects the community.
291	We recently moved here from another state and the education system is terrible. The teachers are great but the resources that should be available to the teachers, school administrators and so forth is pitiful. I have considered moving because of this issue.
292	We seem so cheap - are we trying to destroy public education?
293	We vote people into office that don't value education - that's why we are 49th or 50th in the country in education funding
294	We will never be an attractive or progressive community unless we invest our resources in the quality of the next generation.
295	While the colleges are good, the rest of the schools are awful. If you want a good education for your kids, you have to send them to private school. More money needs to be spent on education.
296	While we say we support education, it seems as if there is an adversarial approach. My husband works extremely hard and long hours as a public high school teacher for poor pay and no job security. The assumptions made about apathy and ineptness of all teachers due to a few poor examples is galling. Also, a lot of misinformation based on national discussions about unions in some states leave people with the impression that Tucson teachers are equally protected, which they are not.
297	With the decrease in activities at schools it is becoming more important to provide an outlet and space to play and relax in a safe environment.