Rick Santorum, as have many (if not most or all) Republican presidential candidates and elected officials, has strong opinions regarding the benefits of public education and higher education and the role of the federal government in the preservation and support of these institutions. In particular, Santorum’s 2005 critique of the public schools in America continues to illustrate how the most economically and politically affluent citizens of this country are grossly ignorant of what it means to be a member of the lower- and middle-class in the United States.
Home schooling may certainly have benefits over a public school education, but a majority of Americans do not have the resources to effectively implement a home-school curriculum. Public education services the majority, and indeed, public education needs an overhaul. This does not mean, however, that our federal government should wash its hands of public education, leaving states to their own devices as they would like to do with medical programs. If our states are truly united, then our education system should be united, a program implemented that provides uniform education to all students, not merely to those who live with families who can afford the very best education.
Santorum argues that the environment in which a uniform education is afforded provides an unrealistic image of “what life is like.” I am unsure of what frame of reference Mr. Santorum has in regards to public education and “what life is like” for the majority of Americans, but many public schools are those in which various socioeconomic groups are represented, and few of them will ever realize “what life is like” for Santorum.
Over 1.2 million students drop out of school every year, according to research data provided by The Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation. Of those students, approximately half of them are African-American and Latino students. This report illustrates what life is like for the 90% of American children who rely on public education, while their government leaders suggest that less intervention by the federal government is mandated.
Mr. Santorum speaks as poorly of higher education in America, citing the perceived rejection of religious faith by students who go into college. Santorum and all of our state and federal representatives should be more concerned about the growing lack of faith in our leaders, our government, and in the promise that our nation will provide for the general welfare of its citizens. Our federal government rarely wants to provide for anything or involve themselves in any program that involves spending money on its citizens, and our elected representatives endeavor to convince us that fending for ourselves is for our own good.
Our government seeks to cut federal spending on education, again placing the fiscal burden on individual states and citizens who are already strapped for cash. The burden to our country can also be measured in collective dollars and cents, as research shows that among other detriments to society, “dropouts from the class of 2007 will cost our nations more than $300 billion dollars in lost wages, lost taxes and lost productivity.” Money not spent on public schools and education will ultimately be spent on prisons and incarceration.
Our government can find certainly find the money (in excess of $700 billion) to bail out the banking and automobile industries for fear of how the foundation of our country and our economy would be affected by the collapse of those industries, but our government cannot find the money to bail out an industry that is shown to directly impact the success or failure of our nation today and for years to come?
Money does talk, and the actions (or inactions) or our government have demonstrated where our elected officials place their priorities.
