As federal cuts loom, school leaders advocate for schools in D.C. 

Facing potentially devastating federal budget cuts to education and proposals to eliminate more than 40 key programs, California school leaders traveled to the nation’s capital to advocate for adequate education funding and student-friendly policies.

As part of the National School Boards Association’s Federal Relations Network Conference Feb. 5-7, governing board members from California school districts heard from legislative and policy experts, networked with colleagues from across the country and met with their own elected representatives in Congress, including California Sen. Barbara Boxer.

California’s FRN delegation included CSBA officers, CSBA Governmental Relations Chairs and association lobbyists.

“The federal budget is awful,” said Rick Pratt, CSBA Assistant Executive Director for Governmental Relations. “It eliminates funding for 42 programs, provides virtually no increases for major programs like Title I and IDEA, and proposes $100 million for vouchers.”

Conference participants said federal lawmakers need to hear from school board members on the front lines as they consider budget proposals that recommend huge education cuts. In fact, the budget proposed by President Bush would cut federal support for education by 5.5 percent or $3 billion; eliminate programs like Carl D. Perkins vocational education, dropout prevention, and Safe and Drug-Free Schools. The president also proposes expanding the controversial No Child Left Behind Act into the nation’s high schools by establishing a new $400 million “American Competitiveness Initiative” focused on math and advanced placement.

The cuts would be devastating to a state like California. Eliminating the $1.29 billion Perkins program, for example, would cost the state a total of $127.6 million for career and technical education.

California school leaders said it would be a big mistake to balance the federal budget by cutting support for America’s schoolchildren and the education programs they depend upon.

“While we understand there are increased pressures on the federal budget, there can be no doubt that, in these difficult times, it is more important than ever to provide adequate funding for public schools,” said CSBA President Luan B. Rivera, a school board member in the Ramona Unified School District. “Our elected representatives need to hear from us about the many serious challenges facing our schools, our teachers and the children we serve.”

This budget would represent the first decline in federal education spending in nearly a decade.

Pratt said FRN delegates had productive meetings with Sen. Boxer, a Marin County Democrat, and other federal lawmakers from both political parties.