Show Me the Money

An Open Letter to Governor Christie:

So, Governor Christie, we did it. Many of us teachers took the freeze. We gave our school districts millions of dollars, just as you asked us to. With a new school year under way, now is a good time to have a professional, productive and meaningful discussion regarding our state's economic and educational problems.

First, the berating and belittling of the NJEA is counter-productive. As anyone in a first year rhetoric class can tell you, a great deal of credibility rides on not just the message, but the delivery. Governors in states like Colorado who worked cooperatively with their union leaders have shown that much-needed reform can take place. You would be surprised how many teachers--yes, teachers--would support some of your ideas if you would simply take a step back and listen. Most of us live here too, and we've been burdened by the same intolerable rise in property taxes as every other New Jersey resident. We need solutions, not just words.

Second, regarding our pension system, I have to wonder why you haven't said a word about how the state of New Jersey got into this mess in the first place. It is the least complicated problem to understand, but is it politically inconvenient? After all, it was a former Republican governor, another Christie, who borrowed billions of dollars from the public employee pension funds in 1995 in order to balance the state budget. At the time, New Jersey's State Treasurer said that it would create future debt, and "It's the sort of thing that comes back to haunt you." How prescient of him. I wonder what our pension funds would look like if former Governor Christie Whitman had replaced the money as she promised? And by the way, 15 years ago the pension system had a surplus, which is why it was dipped into in the first place.

Lastly, I'm curious as to whether or not you will be working with superintendents and municipal leaders in a meaningful, constructive way going forward. What is your four-year (or perhaps eight-year) plan? Does it involve generating funds from other sources, or should we expect continued massive cuts? What changes will be made to ensure that New Jersey schools will get enough state funding to maintain quality programs? And remember, it took years of financial and legislative mismanagement to get to this point.

No one would argue with you that New Jersey's property tax problems don't need fixing. But slashing school budgets and pressuring teachers to take salary freezes is like performing an amputation before trying chemotherapy on a cancer patient.

Now that you have an opportunity to select a new education commissioner, perhaps you'll find someone who has the expertise to craft meaningful solutions . Until then, I'll be listening carefully, trying to understand just how our state's financial crisis will be solved if your only plan is to attack the NJEA and ask teachers to give back their money.