SPS layoffs are lose-lose
I urge all citizens of Spokane to oppose the recent layoffs of 325 staff (including 182 certificated staff) by Spokane Public Schools. These layoffs are morally wrong and have both negative short-term and long-term economic consequences.
Public schools are a public good, and one Spokane has valued. I am a proud product of Spokane Public Schools and the mother of a kindergartner. The schools provide so much more than instruction to the children of Spokane. Many of the cuts are from the schools with the most need, creating profound inequities even once the remaining faculty are redistributed. These cuts also clearly fly in the face of the will of the electorate who have repeatedly voted to reduce class sizes.
In the near term, the labor market will be forced to deal with a sudden influx of 300 plus jobseekers or a “brain drain” as they move for opportunities better matching their training. In the longer term, the current students will suffer from the reduced opportunities the schools will afford - leading to lower educational and career attainment for decades to come.
Please contact your state legislators to ask that they fix the funding problem the legislature has created.
Nicole J. Moore
Spokane