Legislators talk early education at forum

    The issue of preschool dominated the first legislative briefing of the year in Washington County. More than 30 people attended the briefing at the Washington County Courthouse on Saturday, during which State Representative Jarad Klein of Keota and State Senator Sandra Greiner of Keota answered questions from the public.

    Holly Soboroff of Washington told the legislators she was worried that funding for preschool would be cut. She was not the only one. A number of local teachers and school staffers went to the briefing to express their support for preschool, such as Barb Donkersloot, Dana Bangs, Lisa Hixson, Terry Kalm, Rhoda Harris and Veta Thode.  

    ?My husband and I both work, and our children are in day care full-time,? said Soboroff. ?My daughter can attend preschool now because it?s available for free. I doubt we would qualify for any state aid because we?re middle class. We can?t afford preschool and day care. I?m afraid that what is available to her will not be available to my son.?

    Greiner remarked, ?If I had a crystal ball, I would predict that there will be funding for preschool. It may not be structured the way it is now, but I think there will be some assistance.?

    Greiner said the preschool program could be needs-based in the same way the children?s health care program ?hawk-i? is.  

    ?I knocked on so many doors during my campaign, and I can?t tell you how many people mentioned their resistance to the concept that Iowa would be paying for pre-school for families that made over $100,000 a year,? said Greiner. ?I think what we?re going to end up with is some tiered funding. We just know that Gov. Branstad has said we can?t afford to do this program the way it?s structured now.?

    Klein responded by saying that the issue is not about the validity of preschool.

    ?The issue is, how do we fund it correctly?? said Klein. ?Sandy pointed out that we need to make sure we?re getting help to the people who need it. Those who can afford it ? we need them to pay for it. It boils down to allowing parents to have a choice and making sure we?re getting it to the right people. It?s not about whether preschool is good.?

    Kathleen Almelein, a high school art teacher, said she had an idea for restructuring education.

    ?If we can only afford 13 years of education, maybe we should see where the dollars will be the best served,? she said. ?My alternative is to make senior year one semester, and send them to an area community college.?

    Klein responded by saying that community colleges are ?a treasure in Iowa, and we need to make sure we fully support them.?

     Mark Knupp, who farms north of Washington, spoke about labor unions and the salaries of public sector employees.

     ?We have gained the distinction as the state with the greatest disparity between private sector pay and public sector pay,? said Knupp. ?I think that needs to be addressed. I?d rather have the distinction as being No. 1 in education instead of this pay discrepancy.?

    Greiner responded by saying that Gov. Terry Branstad just signed an executive order that rescinded an earlier executive order by former Gov. Chet Culver that mandated the use of project labor agreements for state projects totaling $25 million or more.

    ?There are many family-owned construction companies that were not able to bid competitively for projects because of the PLA (Project Labor Agreement) requirements,? said Greiner. ?Hopefully, now they?ll be on a level playing field.?

For more, see our Jan. 17 print edition.