Meet the candidates for the St. Louis Elected Board of Education for the November 6, 2018 election...

Above are the candidates for a spot on the St. Louis Public School elected School Board for the election on November 6, 2018. They are all good candidates, though I prefer three of them over the rest.

But, here’s what I want to say about this group: They are all asking for the opportunity to help improve the education of St. Louis public school children. That’s a noble cause. This board positioin is a non-paid job. And, it is a job that requires lots of hours and energy if the board is going to be successful improving our public schools.

More than most of the school districts in our region, the St. Louis Public School (SLPS) face an uphill trek to improvement thanks to our own City government, many of our own citizens, and the big-money lobby that often steers this city in a direction that harms instead of helps its residents.

The first thing that is preventing SLPS from having an equal education opportunity for City kids compared to suburban school districts like Clayton, Ladue, Parkway and Rockwood, is how we fund schools in the State of Missouri. School districts are funded primarily through property tax revenues. So the deck is already stacked against urban districts, where property values, on average, are often lower than suburban areas. If we are to offer equal educational opportunities to our children – good school buildings, resources in the schools, qualified teachers, and so forth, we should be on an equal standing with other districts. A solution would be to take all the property tax revenue in a state and divide it up by district on a per student basis – so each district’s budget is the same on a per capita basis based on its student population.

The next culprit is systemic. The St. Louis Development Corporation (SLDC) is “an umbrella, not-for-profit corporation organized under Chapter 355 of the Missouri State Code with the mission of fostering economic development and growth in the City of St. Louis by stimulating the market for private investment in City real estate and business development and improve the quality of life for everyone who lives in, works in, and visits the City.SLDC is directed by its own Board of Directors, and its employees serve as staff support for the City’s seven economic development authorities.” The St. Louis Development Corporation fosters economic development through increased job and business opportunities and expansion of the City's tax base.

The way it works is the SLDC gives developers incentives in the form of tax abatement and TIFs (tax increment financing) plans that lower the cost of building and operating a new development, while lowering the tax revenues a new development would normally generate over a period of five, ten, even 20 years. This is money that helps developers and lowers tax revenues for our schools. There is a lot of debate on the merits and detriments of these incentives, and in how the SLDC operates. Some say they are too ingrained with the business community and developers and too eager to grant tax abatement and TIFs at any cost to keep development happening. Others believe that if we had better schools, less crime, higher unemployment north of Delmar, and other amenities, the City would act as a magnet to further development based on those attributes alone.

The City government (mayor, Board of Alderman, and others) do not have direct influence for our schools. Maybe they should have some of that responsibility and authority. But there are things they can do – and so far have not – to help the state of this school district . . . the children of our residents.

Our student population in St. Louis has other needs that more affluent districts don’t have. Few have libraries anymore. Some do not offer arts, music, and full physical education programs. Most of the school buildings are in need of some major repairs. Computers are few and far between. Teacher aides, and other specialists like school nurses, counselors, speech pathologists, psychologists and others are often not available due to restrictive budgets needed to hire them.

I’ve heard numbers for homeless children attending SLPS placed between 6,000 and 9,000. This includes those living on the streets, with relatives, staying with friends or acquaintances, or in short-term hotels and shelters. Many of these kids still make the effort to come to school to learn and get an education – despite the fact that they may also be hungry (sometimes malnourished), in need of basic essentials such as toiletries, cold weather clothing, good shoes, and medical attention, including vaccinations.

So, if you were on the Board of Education in St. Louis (or any of the other disadvantaged cities throughout this rich nation), your ability to make a difference could be the challenge of your life. It could be an impossible job to chip away at the problems with sound solutions that help our children get a good education – supporting our principals, our teachers and our students. So my hat is off to each of these candidates. I hope we can generate additional support for them and the Superintendent to do better for our kids, to raise the bar for achievement, and to instill the love of learning in these kids.

If we fail them at the primary or secondary level, here is what will happen for sure: Fewer kids will go to college or a trade school after high school. As a result, fewer will be prepared to get a good job to support themselves and their eventual family. Making less money will perpetuate the cycle of poverty and the City tax base will dwindle further. Crime will surely go up because when you don’t have anything you can do to support yourself and you have lost hope, breaking the law is a short leap.

Do what you can to help St. Louis improve its schools and support its educational leaders!

Photo caption, shown left to right: Donna Jones, Dr. Joyce Roberts, Adam Layne, Bill Haas, Jared Opal, Cydney Johnson, and David Jackson. The League of Women Voters moderator is at the podium.