April 3, 2008
Doesn’t add up: $75,000 sure, $5331 dunno
At Tuesday’s council meeting, only one person questioned whether $75,000 should be doled out of the city budget to social services to help them pay the increased gas costs of a program that helps welfare folks obtain/retain employment (a program that is hard to discount in terms of importance, but the reasonable question was raised as to to what extent taxpayers are going to continue to be asked to pay ever-higher assessments to carry others on their backs, when their own salaries are not keeping up to help them with their own rising gas costs). The money was summarily allocated. Now I read in the P-I that last night there was much handwringing over whether to participate in a consortium that would result in Petersburg receiving $5331 to be used for English as a Second Language programs — cash that as I understand, would not be coming out of the city’s budget, and that other Petersburg programs cannot compete for.
So either we participate in the particular program (a benefit to some members of our community), or not. And people had an issue with this? ???
The quoted objection: ESL students may not stay in the program long. So what? a) let’s assume some kids evolve out of the program due to increased English proficiency — SUCCESS! b) let’s assume some other kids evolve out because their parents relocate due to better opportunities elsewhere — so? I moved a bunch as a kid. Does that mean I should not have had access to the human right of a quality education?
Once people recommend a stupid giveaway to the poor, it becomes hard to vote against it in a town with a lot of poor people — Esp. in a town where when a poor family burns down a house the residents blame EVERYONE but the family that lit the match.
As far as ESL goes, the poor and ignorant find EVERYTHING threatening, including other groups of poor and ignorant people. Petersburg has many dark skinned racists.
End of story.
This post does not even come close to the ABSURDITY that went into this discussion at the school board. Not only is this program needed, but it was disclosed that the state had done the city a favor by reopening the enrollment date. And major kudos to Mrs. Cheryl
Bostick for doing the research at DOE to make this happen. This was a no-brainer that took too long to decide!
“The quoted objection: ESL students may not stay in the program long.”
What the heck does THAT mean? I don’t care if someone gets instruction for a DAY. ANY learning is good learning.
Besides…. From what I’ve been hearing, a LOT of the PPS students could use ESL training.
As far as the gas handout; this city needs to stop sending out money it doesn’t have.
Is this gas money a part of the normal unemployment insurance that we all can rely on if we loose a job through no fault of our own and that we all pay for while working? If it is not, why is the city even being bothered with this?
I keep hearing that Petersburg has more welfare programs than just about any other city around here. Why is that?
What is a baseline for social services in most cities anyway?
That guy wants the money to be spent on a Chuck-E-Cheese.
Patrick Kaine’s report on the April 2 School Board meeting (Small grant sparks big debate in Petersburg, Thursday, April 3, 2008) should be a powerful “heads up” to what we are dealing with in the political arena of our fair city. I have no objections to Kaine’s report; I too attended the meeting and can confirm Kaine’s accuracy. What bothers me is that there was any hesitation in accepting a grant of $5331 aimed at supporting Virginia’s mandated English as a Second Language objectives. Cheryl Bostick, supervisor of federal programs for PPS, clearly explained the necessity for our school district to join a consortium with other local districts before we can accept the grant. She then described the need for ESL students to increase their English fluency by graduated percentages within the next year in order to meet AYP. To make her point, Bostick provided a handout before the meeting and added a concise PowerPoint to her very coherent verbal explanation, thus addressing the visual and verbal learning styles of her audience.
What appalls me is that, even after Bostick restated the urgency for the Board’s approval, there was outright hesitation from a Board member who felt he needed more time to consider the grant. Whether or not our community supports our 119 ESL students is not open to consideration; accreditation of our schools is dependent upon our meeting the objectives of NCLB. $5331 would help pay for materials necessary meet these objectives.
Petersburg is under siege once again; our battles against poverty, crime, and under-employment are over-whelming. We must put aside our own interests, trust those who know their profession, and stop fighting the people who are trying to help us.
I have a problem with gas money given out to people on social services. Sure people need their jobs, but as I understand it, social services and the welfare to work program, everything is done except holding their hands and carrying them to work. Job training is provided, for some a car is given, day care is provided, free, and the children get free insurance. Now, you want money to be sure that they have gas for their cars. I think the whole system continues to criple people instead of helping them. Busses are still available and so is car pooling. Bicycles work with just a little peddling. Maybe if we took that money and gave it to the schools, the children of those in the system will grow up more educated. Next year we will need money to pay their care insurance as well. I suppose I sound cold and gruel, and I am not. I can remember car pooling to leave one section of town to go to Walnut Hill to work. When my ride was off, I walked and I worked the 11:00 - 7:00 shift. Dangerous? Yes, but it was my job, and it was my children that needed to be cared for. So, I put one foot in front of the other and took care of my responsibility.
Nzinga has this issue Nailed. Enough said.