Issue Position: Education

Issue Position

People move to, stay in, and return to the Spokane-area largely because of our high-quality public schools. While we have reason to be proud, we need to continue to be competetive.

The Washington State Supreme Court has said the "pace of progress must quicken" regarding adequate funding of basic education. The state constitution says that education is the "paramount duty" of our state government. Our highest state court has ordered the legislature to act. And yet, another legislative session has come and gone without a susbstantive plan.

Unfortunately, my opponent's response was to antagonize, chastise, and criticize the Court.

Here's what I believe:

We must employ a teacher to student ratio that maximizes the educational process.
We need to recruit, retain and respect our teachers. They have not received a cost of living increase in over 6 years.
We must insist on high standards for our public schools and provide our students with the tools they need reach their individual potential.

Higher Education
We are very proud of Eastern, Gonzaga, WSU, Whitworth, our other community colleges. Unfortunately, over the last four years, higher education has become increasingly out of reach for middle class families. Since my opponent has been in office, tuition has nearly doubled and state support for higher education has dropped dramatically. We must reverse this trend to keep our state competitive in the job market. I want employers to first look at local graduates.

We need a post-secondary educational system that serves everyone.

The growing medical field in Spokane means there is a need for technical workers and this means we need to encourage access to these programs. Our community colleges must have the resources to meet this demand. And, at the same time, we need to support apprenticeship programs for those who want to work in construction and other industries. A vibrant economy must include everyone!

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