The accounting of town politics
In a couple of days, my residential town will be voting. It is an important one for a town with a population of about 30k residents that is praised for its diverse community. There are 16 openings (mostly elected volunteer positions) including two for the planning board, one for the town treasurer and two for school committee members. Just on par with our national political climate, my town has been buzzing about the school committee election. Our school committee has been politicized and my text messages have been 10xed with mothers discussing and campaigning for candidates that they support and revolting about sensical and nonsensical campaign promises and affirmations by perceived opponents.
A l’ordre du jour, there are decisions to be made about a new middle school building (much needed due to the growing number of children), curriculum improvements (despite being a top “great schools” town, test scores have been declining), and of course the supposedly DEI and equity agenda (opposed by a growing number of conservative parents).
While I usually avoid politics and public drama, politics came through my parental feeds, heated discussions on the soccer fields, thousands of text messages, and so many requests to door-knock/volunteer (I wish I had the desire or the time to do so). At the latest, some of the allegations from “distraught parents, horrified residents and abused tax-payers” have left me, flabbergasted and “unbalanced”.
Some of the protests from these conscious parents include (using words from their posts):
“The removal of precious conversation land from the elderly by eminent domain to build an unneeded $200M school”
“The removal of parents from the entire education process to keep them uninformed”
“The secret introduction of illegal age-appropriate sex presentations in the elementary schools”
“The increase of school budget to support illegal race-based agendas while children continue to suffer”
Are these allegations funded? They are not! They follow the trend of the “fear” strategy that currently divides parents about their school committees.
There have been discussions about using a specific piece of land for the new school and I am a bit lost about what piece of land should be used.
I am fully informed of the curriculum taught at the school, which is aligned with the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.
I am satisfied with everything that my daughter is exposed to and consider it appropriate for her age. I have not witnessed any illegal presentations or discussions. Seriously, in the current world we are living in, she is exposed to much more in her surroundings, social media, and the news. I want her to be well-rounded and aware of her world. I want her to be open-minded. Seriously, I have bigger worries, there are bigger worries.
I support any programs that can help my immigrant community, lower-income and disadvantaged families, increase their chances to get more opportunities. I do not understand why anyone would be against this especially since test scores have been in decline (especially in the low-income, Black community).
They also believe “that spending is out of control”. As a mindful accountant, I wanted to find solace in the numbers and visited the annual reports available and the proposed budget. In the proposed budget with a revenue of $147M, the allocation to the schools is $62M (42% of the total budget) which is the most significant expenditure for the town, far ahead of employee benefits (15%) and public safety (10%). The school budget is being increased by $3.2M (of course the biggest increase). The increased expenses are mostly funded by increased property taxes (and governmental funding). Putting it bluntly, our town's taxes have significantly increased because of the significant increase in the schools' expenses. Building a new middle school will cost more than $70M+ to the town (not $200M), which will probably be financed through government bonds, state funding, or other types of loans.
The schools have an enrollment of more than 4,000 students with an estimated expense of $16.8K per pupil while our state average is $19K per pupil. Ironically, most of the residents are in favor of building a Trader’s Joe rather than building a much-needed elementary school. Our town budget and the allocations mimic most of other towns and cities in America. Public education is expensive, and usually funded through property taxes. Through the school committees, the planning boards, and other elected or appointed officials, residents can control and decide how their taxes are spent or who gets the perceived benefits of their supposed tax generosity. They can protect their equity, protect their investment and guarantee the future of their children.
Personally, I want to trust that all the candidates sincerely care that my Black daughter receives all the educational support she needs to be successful and competitive. Personally, I’d rather not have to consider private school because of politics, drama, and inequality. Personally, I have to do a lot of research before voting on April 25.
Objectively, we should be spending more time doing homework, math drills, and reading books with our children rather than organizing in order to protect our schools and our children’s rights to an equitable education. Objectively, the town needs to invest more in education to reclaim its position as a leader in the state.
How do we reclaim this position? Is it by dividing parents? Is it by going through the numbers? Is it by taxing residents more? Is it by voting, electing candidates that can make intelligent decisions? Is it by voting, electing candidates that campaign fear and division? Is it by proposing a balanced budget?
Unfortunately, education is undeniably a competition and not always an equitable right.
Unfortunately (or fortunately), none of the school committee candidates are accountants.
Unfortunately, I will remain unbalanced.
hashtag#thebalancedsheets hashtag#cpa hashtag#education hashtag#election
