This op-ed appeared in the Post Register.
Our Idaho Democratic Party platform focuses on values. It’s simple and straightforward. Rather than parsing out pages and pages of specific policies, the platform focuses on what matters. In fact, you might be surprised to find much in common with the values stated in the platform.
This week, I want to focus on the first pillar of our platform: A quality education for every Idaho student.
“We believe in fulfilling our constitutional and moral obligation to fully and adequately fund public education. We believe that education is a life-long enterprise, and we support increasing access to technical and vocational training, higher education, job skills training and life-long learning opportunities.”
Our forebears accepted that education is necessary for civil society. Thomas Jefferson believed an educated populace essential to knowledgeable participation in public life — particularly in creating a well-informed citizenry. The authors of Idaho’s constitution thought it important enough to demand that our representatives provide a uniform public education.
Unfortunately, rather than focusing on a uniform education, our legislators have instead allowed extremists to dictate an agenda that tears down public education. Rather than building up schools, they suggest jailing librarians. Rather than encouraging knowledge and critical thinking, some school board members insist on banning books.
Meanwhile, we face a teacher shortage in Idaho. We don’t offer our teachers competitive pay or state-level loan forgiveness programs provided in other states. Our so-called leaders underfund education and then announce a budget “surplus.”
An investment in education yields dividends in safer communities, more knowledgeable citizens and better health. Research indicates that a good education — one that starts early in life — improves a variety of outcomes for individuals and communities.
Many Idahoans would rather see us invest in our children and our future rather than indulging in significant tax breaks for the wealthiest among us. Sure, it was probably nice to get that $75 or $150 extra in your bank account that one time. But is it worth it if we continue to underfund education and drive teachers away?
One of the top factors businesses consider when relocating is an educated workforce. In surveys of business owners, taxes don’t make the top three considerations when deciding where to locate. But here we are, in Idaho, with a bunch of “leaders” patting themselves on the back for a massive surplus and more plans to give tax breaks to their cronies.
Idahoans consistently list education as a top priority, but our legislators regularly ignore pleas to give education the boost it needs — especially in rural areas. It’s time for that to change. We have a chance to make our voices heard this November. We can vote on the Quality Education Act (Prop 1) requiring the legislature to do its job and take the first step toward adequately funding education. On top of that, we have the chance to get rid of representatives who pay lip service to education while voting to cut funding. It’s time for legislators who will put our money where their mouths are.
Miranda Marquit, Master of Business Administration, is a nationally recognized financial expert, writer, speaker and podcaster. She is the chair of the Bonneville County Democratic Central Committee and a candidate for State Representative.