Fort Bend ISD in shambles (Houston, Pasadena: buying a home, buying, school district)

[glorplaxy]

Originally Posted by nana053

In Texas, you do need air conditioning. Heck, it's hot 9 months out of the year here.

As for the other stuff, I don't know that our ISD has much of that. The main expense is the wages of the teachers and admins and staff.

Buses also cost money, but I don't see how you avoid school buses given the fact that there are very few schools here where you can walk or bike (no sidewalks). As the fuel costs go up, these costs will be higher and higher.

What are you talking about? People have lived in Texas for thousands of years without air conditioners. Do you really think your children couldn't survive in an open air-school with plenty of shade? If they can't then that is really, really sad.

There are plenty of schools you can bike or walk to. THe problem is that suburbs have built themselves in a very stupid way so that it would take a long time. How about kids in Indian villages who walk 10 miles to get to school?

Kids don't need to be pampered at school, they need to get educated and socialized and that's it.

[nana053]

Originally Posted by glorplaxy

What are you talking about? People have lived in Texas for thousands of years without air conditioners. Do you really think your children couldn't survive in an open air-school with plenty of shade? If they can't then they are really little brats.

There are plenty of schools you can bike or walk to. THe problem is that suburbs have built themselves in a very stupid way so that it would take a long time. How about kids in Indian villages who walk 10 miles to get to school?

Kids don't need to be pampered at school, they need to get educated and socialized and that's it.

Yeah, people lived in Texas without a/c. Learning does not occur when people are uncomfortably hot or cold though. Would you say the same about going to school in Chicago without heat? I wouldn't.

There are a few schools here in Pearland that people can bike or walk to, but the one my grandkids are zoned to is not one of them. It's unsafe to walk there due to the highways and no sidewalks. The distance is not as much of a problem. I cannot change where the schools are located. Maybe you would like to come build a new school here that my kids can walk to.

We don't live on a reservation and it is not 10 miles to our school, but it would not be a good idea to bike or walk there.

[crone]

I went to Woodrow Wilson elementary, Lanier and Lamar. No AC, but the windows would open and the school was sited so as to not get direct sun and to catch the prevailing breeze. We all wanted it. We walked to high school or took a city bus. I am not suggesting to do away with AC.
My problem with all of this is the folks who created this mess are not being touched by it. The bottom of the food chain is taking the hit.
I cannot imagine throwing Medicaid grannies out on the streets, but that is a cost savings the lege is considering.
I can say that asking parents to declare in May if their kids need bus transportation next year is not unreasonable. Either they come on their own, or take the bus. We should not have to provide for something that is not used.

[jasltx]

Originally Posted by glorplaxy

What are you talking about? People have lived in Texas for thousands of years without air conditioners. Do you really think your children couldn't survive in an open air-school with plenty of shade? If they can't then that is really, really sad.

There are plenty of schools you can bike or walk to. THe problem is that suburbs have built themselves in a very stupid way so that it would take a long time. How about kids in Indian villages who walk 10 miles to get to school?

Kids don't need to be pampered at school, they need to get educated and socialized and that's it.

glorplaxy,

People existed for millions of years without the Internet. You seem so enamored of the good old days that perhaps you should consider going back to books and scrolls instead.

[mike650i]

Originally Posted by nana053

In Texas, you do need air conditioning. Heck, it's hot 9 months out of the year here.

As for the other stuff, I don't know that our ISD has much of that. The main expense is the wages of the teachers and admins and staff.

Buses also cost money, but I don't see how you avoid school buses given the fact that there are very few schools here where you can walk or bike (no sidewalks). As the fuel costs go up, these costs will be higher and higher.

It's not AC or fuel that is causing fiscal crisises. It is almost always overpaid government workers getting too large of pensions for too long and health care costs, where the worker pays virtually nothign for health insurance that covers just about anything.

That plus perhaps too many governmetn workers.

Let's not sidestep with energy costs or AC...that's ridiculous. Education costs were just fine in the 80's and 90's. It's not until now that these fiscal disasters occurred, and it's solely labor costs.

[crone]

Are you suggesting that teachers are overpaid government workers who live too long and have medical needs? Why don't we just do away with government schools? That's what the Republicans have wanted all along.
Next thing they want to get rid of is birth control.
I'm glad I'm too old to see the end of this movie.

[crbcrbrgv]

Originally Posted by glorplaxy

What are you talking about? People have lived in Texas for thousands of years without air conditioners. Do you really think your children couldn't survive in an open air-school with plenty of shade? If they can't then that is really, really sad.

If you think we should live like we did thousands of years ago, that's even sadder.

[Trae713]

Originally Posted by ftjoe12

Funny how capitalism lead to the rise of the strongest economy in history with the strongest personal freedoms. Anti-tax? Hell yes. If you don't understand how lowering taxes will actually increase revenue there's not much point in arguing with you. Move to California, pay high taxes, try to find a job with 1 of these evil companies, and then wonder why their schools are in even worse shape than ours.

Again, more money isn't going to lead to a better education.

And wonder why California students score higher on the SAT than Texas students? And Cali universities blow Texas' away. We spend more per prisoner than we do per student (and by a lot). That needs to hange.

[crbcrbrgv]

Originally Posted by Scarface713

And wonder why California students score higher on the SAT than Texas students? And Cali universities blow Texas' away. We spend more per prisoner than we do per student (and by a lot). That needs to hange.

That and our love affair with football. The high school I attended in Illinois had one of the best football programs in the state. The stadium seated 5500 people. When I worked in the Valley, the high school's football stadium seated a little over 10,000 and the team (as is the case with all Valley schools) had a snowball's chance in hell of ever making it out of the regional playoffs.

[glorplaxy]

Originally Posted by nana053

Yeah, people lived in Texas without a/c. Learning does not occur when people are uncomfortably hot or cold though. Would you say the same about going to school in Chicago without heat? I wouldn't.

There are a few schools here in Pearland that people can bike or walk to, but the one my grandkids are zoned to is not one of them. It's unsafe to walk there due to the highways and no sidewalks. The distance is not as much of a problem. I cannot change where the schools are located. Maybe you would like to come build a new school here that my kids can walk to.

We don't live on a reservation and it is not 10 miles to our school, but it would not be a good idea to bike or walk there.

Are you SERIOUS? Have you people never been outside during the summer under some shade? It's not that bad if you actually try it.

Going to school in Chicago without heat is different. I know of no places in the world where people live in very cold weather without some form of heat. However, I know of many, many places in the world where people live in very hot weather and do not have air conditioning and they get along fine.

Maybe you can take the blame for your children not being able to walk to school since you chose to move to a poorly designed municipality that is so spread out with pretty much no public transportation.