This is why we need the Education Department
The dramatic announcements to cut up to 50% of the U.S. Department of Education will have many repercussions, including a severe cutback in services for students with disabilities and for those families in rural communities with fewer options for support services.
An excellent article came out in the recent National Education Association newsletter, including highlights I think are worthy of sharing with the general public. I share this because as an elementary teacher, I’m concerned about the impacts of these cuts here in Hawaii.
— One of the main roles of the Department of Education is to supplement state resources for the 7.5 million students with disabilities (including speech, hearing and behavioral supports).
— Halting federal oversight and shifting the implementation of special education programs to the states will put student rights in jeopardy. (Parents with students with Individualized Education Programs depend on federal laws and regulations to enforce districts to supply services to their students with special needs. Without a DOE, who will enforce these regulations?)
— Many private schools can’t offer accommodations for students with significant disabilities or complex support requirements, let alone guarantee their rights are upheld. And in rural communities, the number of private schools is all but nonexistent. (This leaves rural parents and those with fewer resources at a disadvantage, and results in a disproportionate number of lower-income students in public schools. Those who can afford it often will enroll their students in private or charter schools.)
The sweeping decision to essentially gut the Department of Education is a dramatic move that would have tragic results for millions of students all across America.
It behooves us all to speak out and support our Department of Education — support a guaranteed public education for all students. That is one of the covenants of our democracy.
Toni Reynolds
Kailua-Kona
Use large tower to help promote Hilo
I have just completed the interisland cruise that stops on four islands and spends a day in Hilo.
I am prejudiced, of course, but Hilo looked remarkably lovely from the ship — the most attractive place of the stops.
However, there is a large, fading tower with a red and white checkerboard on it, front and center. What a wasted opportunity.
If that were painted in Hawaiian colors with lovely flowers on it, and there was a big “Welcome to Hilo” painted on it, every one of the thousands of ship passengers who stop in our port would take a picture of it. And those pictures would be posted on social media for an audience of millions. This would be at no cost, other than the periodic maintenance such a decoration would require.
Why doesn’t somebody make it worth noticing? Make it an icon that shows the world see just how proud we are and how glad we are that visitors have come.
Charles Clark
Hilo
