Earlier this week, President Bush reveiled his 2.5 trillion budget, which included cuts in education. In fact, it would cut 48 programs in education, and grants that implement Drug-free schools, technology grants, and additional financial cuts towards Early Start Literacy programs, Upward Bound programs, inner-city youths and talent programs. WOW! That's alot to take in. All you have to do is a simple google search to find that there is quite a bit to offer when it comes to the president's budget cuts! Just curious as to what your thoughts were on the cut and how will it affect us as future teachers?

The budget cuts are really going to cause problems for education. It is amazing how President Bush creates No Child Left Behind as a requirement for all schools, yet he does not fund it and now he is taking away more money from the educational system. It is simply ridiculous. President Bush has also proposed cutting student loans for college. Some people depend on these loans to fund their college. Not everyone is born into wealth and going to college is a dream that can only be achieved with the use of student loans and grants.

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I currently work with Upward Bound, and I am pretty mad. President Bush doesn't realize what he is doing. The program is excellent. It helps students keep up their grades and to get into college. Most of these kids will be the first ones in their families to go to college. I have spoke with some of the students and their leaders. One of the leaders is going to go to Washington to try to at least get a little bit of money for the program. The students are really, really mad too. Coming to the college and actually working with a college student on their homework and just talking to them is what they look forward to every week. Its a great program, and I want whatever it takes to keep the program alive to be done.

I hate that these programs are being cut. Sometimes these programs are all the students have. Sometimes that is the only thing keeping them in school, like the debate team we watched about. To cut these programs will hurt lots of school systems. In order to make a better America we must start with reforms in the schools, not by taking everything they can from the schools.

I believe, is in our classroom on Wednesday nights, there is a quote that says,

"In a democracy, the people get what they deserve."


That's about all I can say without writing a book about the unethical policies of the Bush Adminsitration. Somebody must think he is capable.

We must take all factors into consideration when dealing with this issue. Something must give in the budget. Most funding for schools does not reside with the national government. Only a small percentage of the money spent on education is alloted from the federal officials. Instead it is the state and local officials that send the highest percentage of the funds to schools. In regards to NCLB, I believe that Bush made a mistake and by not funding it is trying to rectify his mistake. Regarding student loans, I believe that there are numerous benefits as well as the obvious cons to such an action. For example, there is increased competition for scholarships to college. This means that students must do better in order to get scholarships; they must work harder and thereby emphasizes the importance of doing ones best in regards to higher education. So yes there are good aspects and bad aspects, but I think that only time will tell what happens. Reagan did the same thing when he cut educational funding in the 80s with his policy of tough love in order to reduce the deficit. Reagan is seen as one of the great Presidents in our history even with this action with school funding. Could this be something similiar? I believe that it is now an action that only time will tell.

Ronald Reagan may be considered one of the greatest presidents ever, but there are many things about him that were not so great. When he did cut the budget he left states in a huge mess. The states really suffered the brunt of his reform. In my opinion, I don't really feel like George W. Bush will be remembered as one of the greatest presidents.

I find Bush's cuts to be very strange. He wants to take money away from education, yet he still has forced his NCLB program on the country's schools. It seems to me that it is going to be hard enough for us future, and current, teachers to adhere to the NCLB requirements as they are. Now he expects school systems to do this with less money? It doesn't make any sense to me. Does Bush have a plan to deal with this problem? I may be wrong here and if I am please tell me.