Blog post 4

Dear Senator Kenny Yuko,
It has been brought to my attention that the Supreme Court of the State of Ohio has found Ohio’s system of school finance to be unconstitutional, yet this system still remains. Many schools do not meet the criteria of a well-funded and well-supplied school. This is a major concern because this affects the performance of students. Many students who come from lower-income families and go to public schools that are considered unconstitutional, suffer from this unfairness. The unanimous court of Brown vs. Board of Education stated that "Today it is a principal instrument in awakening the child to cultural values, in preparing him for later professional training, and in helping him to adjust normally to his environment. In these days, it is doubtful that any child may reasonably be expected to succeed in life if he is denied the opportunity of an education." This goes to show how kids are denied a proper education due to their environment, and it is affecting them negatively. We cannot expect children to learn in schools that do not provide a proper learning environment.  A school that lacks proper health standards and building standards portray that education is not significant in our society. We cannot expect children to learn, or to be excited to learn when education is portrayed this way. How a building is structured can affect how a child learns. That is why I believe it is time to make a change. Instead of reiterating how schools in Ohio are not constitutional, it is time to put in a law to begin some action. We cannot keep waiting around for these schools to change on their own. It is time that we start by fixing what has been identified and give these schools and upgrade. We must show the children that schools are important and that their education is important. It is time to fix the structural parts of the buildings that we send children off to learn in. All children, despite where they live and what school they go to, deserve a safe and inspiring learning environment. I hope you take my argument into consideration when discussing the DeRolph IV decision, and begin to act on this decision of how Ohio's system of school finance being unconstitutional.

Thank you,
Ariel Smith