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Former CEO of Intel, Craig Barrett, said that Intel would not have located plants here if the education funding situation then had been what it is now. Goes to show how important a good public education system is to major employers and how slashing it is bad for business and bad for the future of our state. Barrett's comments were echoed by several executives of leading Arizona businesses. I hope Gov. Brewer and the legislature are paying attention.
Craig Barrett needs to get a grip, face reality, and look at the big picture. Major corporations do not decide to locate facilities in cities or states based on the funding for public schools. These large companies are looking for people with skills, good work records, and most of all: the willingness to work hard and help contribute to the company's bottom line revenue.
With this state spending over 50% of its budget on public education, cuts are definitely necessary. Lots of other cities and states have had to make cuts in education and other services due to the economy ... but I don't hear about companies wanting to leave, or not locate to those other places. I'd be willing to bet that most CEOs would rather invest in good private schools anyway ... and the Phoenix metro area has some of the best private educational institutions in the nation.
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Originally Posted by azriverfan.
60 Minutes recently aired a segment that showed that many American companies set up companies in foreign countries to lower their taxes. That proves the real motivation for companies to relocate headquarters. Basically, it proved a point, that companies care about the bottom line first and foremost and not public schools. The article below paraphrases the 60 Minutes episode.
As much I hate to see our state slash the education budget, if our goal is to create more jobs, we need to do more to cut taxes and encourage companies to move here. Without jobs, all of this is immaterial. Education will then follow.
Absolutely right! I'm more convinced that one of the reasons Phoenix lacks the presence of corporate HQs that pay competitive wages is the calliber of people who move here. Many transplants are here for reasons like the weather, cheap housing, and close proximity to Vegas and the west coast, rather than important reasons like jobs. For such a large metro area, Phoenix is a little too laid back ... and reputable firms are not wanting to hire slackers or transient residents.
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Originally Posted by roundball
If the Senate budget passes this year....AZ will have cut 1.4Billion in K-12 funding the past 3 years. Higher education is just as bad.
Arizonans passed a proposition last year, prop. 100, to tax ourselves an extra 1% in sales tax to help support (mostly) education..........I guess we see how that's going. I wonder what is going to happen in 2013 when it runs out?......
That's all the more proof that raising taxes DOESN'T do anything to save or improve public education. Case in point: eleven years ago, Arizonans voted to raise sales taxes by six tenths of a cent specifically to improve education. Nothing has improved ... in fact, according to most sources, Arizona continues to rank poorly in educational standards. We can't keep taxing ourselves with false hopes that things will get better, because more taxation rarely does anything except forcing all of us to pay more. The day I see education improve with taxation is the day it snows in Phoenix in July!
That's all the more proof that raising taxes DOESN'T do anything to save or improve public education. Case in point: eleven years ago, Arizonans voted to raise sales taxes by six tenths of a cent specifically to improve education. Nothing has improved ... in fact, according to most sources, Arizona continues to rank poorly in educational standards. We can't keep taxing ourselves with false hopes that things will get better, because more taxation rarely does anything except forcing all of us to pay more. The day I see education improve with taxation is the day it snows in Phoenix in July!
Sure it does. 24 students a teacher vs. 38 would make some improvements.
Having the funding for advanced classes for the kids that can handle it would improve things.
Raising taxes is not the end all be all. I'll agree with you there. We may not need to be at the top of the list in states for spending...it would be nice to be a bit higher though. Some of the problems come from how public schools are funded and the distribution of those taxes. I know/think that parents are the #1 factor. At the same time, if a 5th grader in AZ is learning the same math as a 3rd grader in MN.....
If the Senate budget passes this year....AZ will have cut 1.4Billion in K-12 funding the past 3 years. Higher education is just as bad.
Arizonans passed a proposition last year, prop. 100, to tax ourselves an extra 1% in sales tax to help support (mostly) education..........I guess we see how that's going. I wonder what is going to happen in 2013 when it runs out?......
I have heard many negative comments from people who visit here on how much they have to pay in sales taxes. I do not look forward to what the budget holds because I know it won't be pretty. We simply need to keep trying to encourage businesses to stay here.
What do you think will happen in 2013 if things don't stabilize?
I attended a Arizona business conference many years ago where Barrett was the keynote speaker. He talked about how important quality education was to Intel. He explained Intel's efforts in Arizona including how they were funding programs at the universities and even a high school in Chandler as I recall.
Education matters. It is huge, people. You can grasp your wallet and slip into denial, but unless AZ improves its public education system and reputation for being last the party is over. It is not just business leaders who say this. Virtually every one moving here who posts on the forum wants to know where the good schools are. We are just shooting ourselves in the foot by cutting investments (yes INVESTMENTS) in education in this state.
Your post bears repeating. Investments in education serve us all, not only the parents of the children receiving it.
Almost every problem my elderly mother has experienced in her medical care in Arizona can be traced back (and I take the time to do it) to a doctor's office employee who failed to do something required or did something wrong. Files misplaced. Errors in billing. Errors in reporting to insurance. One dr.'s faxes "not received" by another dr. Test results mixed up. Messages not reported to the doctor. Specimens left unattended. And it's not one office, it's many -- and my mother has 11 doctors, not counting the ones that have treated her in the hospital. When she is hospitalized, my family takes turns being in her room 24/7. I don't in any way believe this is malicious or uncaring. But it is unprofessional. Complain to the doctors and they say they "can't get good help." I've lived in five states and I've never seen anything like this. I can't help but believe the educational system plays a part. I have a friend who works in a post-high school vocational center in Tucson and she says a huge percentage of her students are barely literate. It makes a difference to everyone's day-to-day interactions.
Your post bears repeating. Investments in education serve us all, not only the parents of the children receiving it.
Since everybody has to pay taxes for education, it SHOULD serve/benefit us all ... but it doesn't really. Many parents use the school system as free daycare. They sponge off the benefits, but the rest of us are stuck paying for what amounts to a substandard system.
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Originally Posted by Jukesgrrl
Almost every problem my elderly mother has experienced in her medical care in Arizona can be traced back (and I take the time to do it) to a doctor's office employee who failed to do something required or did something wrong. Files misplaced. Errors in billing. Errors in reporting to insurance. One dr.'s faxes "not received" by another dr. Test results mixed up. Messages not reported to the doctor. Specimens left unattended. And it's not one office, it's many -- and my mother has 11 doctors, not counting the ones that have treated her in the hospital. When she is hospitalized, my family takes turns being in her room 24/7. I don't in any way believe this is malicious or uncaring. But it is unprofessional. Complain to the doctors and they say they "can't get good help." I've lived in five states and I've never seen anything like this. I can't help but believe the educational system plays a part. I have a friend who works in a post-high school vocational center in Tucson and she says a huge percentage of her students are barely literate. It makes a difference to everyone's day-to-day interactions.
And you attibute all this to the lack of funding for public schools??? We need to look at the big picture because this is the result of many OTHER issues. Much of the horrible service you encountered has to do with the calliber of people who relocate here. They move here mostly becaue it's warm & sunny every friggin' day, their house payments are cheaper than where they came from, etc. Sorry to say this, but a good share of transplants are slackers who couldn't care less about competitive jobs/career fields, or improving their own lives. And guess what? Those people attended public school systems in the states they came from ... not here!
Statements are frequently made about our students competing with India and China. How much do you think those nations spend on K-12 education?
Education runs in families. I've never seen a report showing that college graduate parents in AZ have less of a chance of having college graduate kids than other States. If you don't have a dad and your mom dropped out of high school, you have just about as many opportunities as the Soccer Mom kids, but realistically, the odds are very long that you will get your degree.
I've spent the last four weeks working my tail off trying to get HS Students ready for AIMS Math. Most do not know integers, let alone their multiplication facts. The schools and parents deserve much of the blame. More money would have not helped. More money just brought in new curriculum and less emphasis on the three Rs. You would think that growing up poor would teach them a lot about economics, but being on so many forms of public assistance from before birth, has had an opposite effect.
Last edited by khuntrevor; 04-03-2011 at 02:23 PM..
Craig Barrett needs to get a grip, face reality, and look at the big picture. Major corporations do not decide to locate facilities in cities or states based on the funding for public schools. These large companies are looking for people with skills, good work records, and most of all: the willingness to work hard and help contribute to the company's bottom line revenue.
With this state spending over 50% of its budget on public education, cuts are definitely necessary. Lots of other cities and states have had to make cuts in education and other services due to the economy ... but I don't hear about companies wanting to leave, or not locate to those other places. I'd be willing to bet that most CEOs would rather invest in good private schools anyway ... and the Phoenix metro area has some of the best private educational institutions in the nation.
Absolutely right! I'm more convinced that one of the reasons Phoenix lacks the presence of corporate HQs that pay competitive wages is the calliber of people who move here. Many transplants are here for reasons like the weather, cheap housing, and close proximity to Vegas and the west coast, rather than important reasons like jobs. For such a large metro area, Phoenix is a little too laid back ... and reputable firms are not wanting to hire slackers or transient residents.
That's all the more proof that raising taxes DOESN'T do anything to save or improve public education. Case in point: eleven years ago, Arizonans voted to raise sales taxes by six tenths of a cent specifically to improve education. Nothing has improved ... in fact, according to most sources, Arizona continues to rank poorly in educational standards. We can't keep taxing ourselves with false hopes that things will get better, because more taxation rarely does anything except forcing all of us to pay more. The day I see education improve with taxation is the day it snows in Phoenix in July!
I don't believe this is the case. Without the proper eduction funding in place, companies will consider it a factor in whether they will consider a location. I also think they want a balance too with other factors.
I know what you mean about the lack of education improvement, but what ideas did you have on trying to make what we have leaner?
Salary caps on school administrators (I would say 60,000 per year). Elimination of many school busses, elimination of a/c by starting after Labor Day. Fines for parents, who do not get their kids to school on time, five year freeze on textbook purchases, and send the illegals home. And a few less "conferences" in San Diego for school administrators to go meet other administrators, who are also from schools that have been miserable failures for four decades.
Your post bears repeating. Investments in education serve us all, not only the parents of the children receiving it.
Almost every problem my elderly mother has experienced in her medical care in Arizona can be traced back (and I take the time to do it) to a doctor's office employee who failed to do something required or did something wrong. Files misplaced. Errors in billing. Errors in reporting to insurance. One dr.'s faxes "not received" by another dr. Test results mixed up. Messages not reported to the doctor. Specimens left unattended. And it's not one office, it's many -- and my mother has 11 doctors, not counting the ones that have treated her in the hospital. When she is hospitalized, my family takes turns being in her room 24/7. I don't in any way believe this is malicious or uncaring. But it is unprofessional. Complain to the doctors and they say they "can't get good help." I've lived in five states and I've never seen anything like this. I can't help but believe the educational system plays a part. I have a friend who works in a post-high school vocational center in Tucson and she says a huge percentage of her students are barely literate. It makes a difference to everyone's day-to-day interactions.
It's really the small things which can add up when it comes to education. I know the state has many older people who are not in school, but to have children suffer here because of it is not right.
I have been working on trying to get school boards more active in the problem. Do you think other options might help our troubles?
60 Minutes recently aired a segment that showed that many American companies set up companies in foreign countries to lower their taxes. That proves the real motivation for companies to relocate headquarters. Basically, it proved a point, that companies care about the bottom line first and foremost and not public schools. The article below paraphrases the 60 Minutes episode.
As much I hate to see our state slash the education budget, if our goal is to create more jobs, we need to do more to cut taxes and encourage companies to move here. Without jobs, all of this is immaterial. Education will then follow.
While I'm not a fan of the governor in general, she is on the right track with regard to her plan to improve the state. Arizona is lowering their corporate tax rate by 2% which most definitely will cause companies to move here. If we could eliminate the state income tax and raise sales tax, we would create even more jobs. The bill would give Arizona the 5th lowest corporate tax rate in the nation.
Bill would give AZ fifth-lowest corporate tax rate in nation… « Maricopa County Republican Committee (http://www.maricopagop.org/2011/02/15/bill-would-give-az-fifth-lowest-corporate-tax-rate-in-nation/ - broken link)
Sorry but it's no secret that great public schools are found in affluent areas in which their high property taxes fund their local public schools. Great schools are not magically created by some universal state policy. It doesn't work that way.
I agree. It's not that people want less Education spending, but the current situation is such that expenditures exceed revenues. That leaves the potential solutions as raising taxes or cutting spending (or some of both). Many people (myself included) feel as though people are taxed enough already. That shifts the focus to spending cuts.
When the budget deficit is big enough (as it is now in places like Arizona), the cuts WILL be painful. The cuts will primarily affect purposeful spending. Chris Christie (R-NJ) says all the time that the vast majority of his cuts have painful consequences.
If AZ can reduce its tax and regulatory burden, it will gain an advantage over other states that are, in many cases, moving in the wrong direction.
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I wonder what is going to happen in 2013 when it runs out?......
