Barbara E. Kerr CTA President

What a difference a year makes. Just over a year ago, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger launched an unprecedented attack on teachers and public education. He accused teachers of not doing their jobs, of being a special interest, and of putting themselves first and kids last. He called a wasteful special election and placed three destructive initiatives on the ballot that would have destroyed tenure, gutted the voter-approved minimum school funding guarantee in Proposition 98, and taken away our ability to advocate for students and public schools.

 

We won. He lost. After a year of heroic efforts by CTA members, leaders and staff, and a broad coalition of public employee unions, we defeated the governor's agenda in the Nov. 8 special election. The victory was especially sweet because it was a victory for ordinary working people — teachers, firefighters, nurses, police — against a supposedly invincible politician with star power.

 

And it made a huge difference this January when the governor made his third State of the State speech. Gone were the bluster and the attacks on teachers and public education. The governor also took a new tone in his public and private statements, more conciliatory and less confrontational. He admitted publicly that his plan for the special election had been mistaken.

 

We should be happy about our victory and the change in tone from the governor. However, we have to remember that tone is not substance. While the governor's education budget is not presented with the aggressive and demeaning language that he used last year, it does not substantially change the position he took in last year's budget.

 

On the surface, the governor's budget does include a cost-of-living adjustment of more than 5 percent, and he has proposed some good things for higher education students.

 

However, his proposed budget still shortchanges our schools. Education funding continues to fall short of Prop. 98 requirements, and he has still made no commitment to repay the money that was borrowed from our schools in 2004.

 

Because of these flaws, the proposed budget shortchanges our schools by more than $3 billion — money owed to us during 2004 and 2005 and promised to us by the governor.

 

In addition, the governor's proposal to reduce Prop. 98 funding in order to fund his after-school programs violates the commitment made to voters when we passed Prop. 49. Prop. 49, you will remember, was introduced by Gov. Schwarzenegger when he was still a movie star. It provided funding for after-school programs to take effect when state revenue increased. That money was not supposed to come from Prop. 98 funds.

 

We can all agree that after-school programs do make a difference for kids, especially those who live in high-poverty neighborhoods. However, we should not be robbing the regular K-14 budget to pay for it.

 

You have to wonder if the governor really heard the voters in November, when they clearly said they support the minimum school funding protections of Prop. 98 and believe our public schools should get the money they are owed under state law.

 

And while I do applaud the governor for reversing the latest round of student fee hikes at our universities and community colleges, I join my colleagues at the California Faculty Association in saying that fee increases and run-down buildings represent just part of the damage that has been done to California's once nationally touted system of affordable and accessible higher education.

 

Certainly, building classrooms is necessary for K-12 schools and higher education. But it's what goes on in those classrooms and the people who make learning happen that count. It takes more than bricks and mortar. We need to invest in the teachers, librarians, counselors and support staff who make public education happen and who build the economic future of this state.

 

I am hopeful that we will be able to work with the governor and the Legislature to make sure our students get the resources they deserve and need to succeed. But actions speak louder than words. And we will have to be just as firm in demanding that the governor fulfill his obligation as we have over the past year.

 

So enjoy the victory and the change of tone. But don't be satisfied.