School Supplies
- Thread starter AIT
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I'm ok with things like the local option sales tax with a target at education IF there is an actual, stated requirement, and real stated goals that administrators can be held accountable to.
Education consumes more than HALF of our state government's expenditures. And that's not even including the more than half of my property taxes that goes towards education as well.
I'm not a cheapskate by any means. I spend literally thousands of dollars a year paying for schools. It is unfathomable to me that the basic essentials can't be paid for without resorting to begging parents for supplies and fundraisers when you have an operating budget of nearly 5 billion dollars a year.
Since a long time ago. Students actually use it very frequently. (Also, the gaming option is very nice for study halls.)
You don't think it's odd that HALF of our state government expenditures are spent on education and teachers still have problems paying for the supplies they need? I'm sure more tax dollars would fix that though.
No, cutting waste would fix that.
What I'm saying is that the root of the problem needs to be addressed, and the answer isn't to just ask parents to provide what they should already be providing via tax dollars.
I'm not blaming teachers, or maybe even individual schools. The whole system is just messed up and it needs to be fixed.
In the short term, though, I'm not opposed to specific goals being addressed by specific taxes, so long as those goals are accountable and achievable.
That is the problem with government run institutions. never enough money. always spending the budget, and then wanting more. Do you think that there is a magic $ number out there that will all of a sudden be enough to satisfy all the needs? Doubtful.
A few years ago, when we weren't in this 'recession' governments were flush with money. What did they do? did they start a stockpile of rainy day funds, or did they increase spending to match earnings? Now where are these governments at? Terrible.
If it's a TI-83+, that was on sale last week for $80 (which is still a ripoff, but is still a savings for $30). I will say that I used the hell out of mine in upper level math classes though, and continue to use it through college.
awesome dude. our schools our going broke, our teachers get paid squat and are still expected to foot the bill for supplies to educate YOUR children, and you think pulling out of their fundraiser is a good idea. it is people like you that make me consider private school.
teacher asks. principal tells her, "there is no money for that, you should cover it yourself." why do your kids have to go door to door, because people like you don't want their property taxes to be high enough to cover all the services they want...like public schools.
C
Cyclone42
Guest
TWENTY-EIGHT replies and nobody answered the question!
Anyway, the answer is Wal-Mart. Of course, most of the people who post here are FAR too stuck-up to even consider shopping there. But I do probably about 90% of my shopping at various Wal-Marts in this area, and they have by far the best prices on school supplies in the back-to-school season. You simply can't beat 10 cents for a paper notebook, for example.
Anyway, the answer is Wal-Mart. Of course, most of the people who post here are FAR too stuck-up to even consider shopping there. But I do probably about 90% of my shopping at various Wal-Marts in this area, and they have by far the best prices on school supplies in the back-to-school season. You simply can't beat 10 cents for a paper notebook, for example.
The problem is, anytime tax increase approval is given by voters, the school systems whiz the money away and rarely do what they say they're going to do with the funds. The prime example is the Great Sales Tax Increase of 1999. You know, the one that got voted down multiple times until the public just figured they weren't going to drop it and laid down on it. The same tax increase that was supposed to come off the books after 10 years. Culver and his cronies made sure to bypass the voters and keep it permanent, though...of course. I'm rambling.
Anyway, the school board told us that approving the sales tax increase was the only way to keep from having to close schools down. Tax increase was approved. They immediately started closing schools down.
The point is, when we approve tax increases, they just continue to burn through the additional funds with seemingly little to show for it, and they constantly have their hands out for more.
I answered the question on post #8.
And I don't shop at Wal-Mart for various reasons, but not because I'm too stuck up.
When I was in Hy-Vee the other day, I saw that they had prepackaged boxes with all the supplies necessary with labels on them for what grade and school they were for. Can't remember the prices, but they were pretty cheap.
so punish the teachers and your child...that is great. lots of wealthy teachers running around anyway.
You're right. Its all for the children. Everyone, open your wallets and question nothing.
I don't expect them to pay for anything.
Don't be mad at me for the organization that is broken. I'm just paying the bills with little to no influence over the actual operation of the system. I've already said I'm willing to pay more if it means that teachers don't have to buy supplies - IF it means that (and I doubt that it will).
I do think pulling out their fundraiser is a good idea. It's wasteful for the taxpayer. Less than half of what they make on them will actually go to the schools, and I'll end up with a bunch of crap I don't really want or need in return. I'd rather just pay an extra 10 bucks in taxes.
Exactly. I don't think ANYONE wants schools to be "underfunded", but nobody is able to really define what "properly funded" is either.
There is a serious push by the current administration to make things transparent, accountable and available. I'd love to see more of that in the education system and state government in general.
Well, I'm pretty glad this thread turned into some political and tax ******* match.
For the OP: I generally get things like notebooks, folders, loose paper, cheap-o pens, wood pencils, and all of those things fairly cheaply during the summer. I think Staples was having a thing last week? Maybe it's still going on though. 1 cent folders and notebooks and some other stuff. Not sure on the details of it though. Maybe it was Office Max though.
There are more/better deals in the beginning of summer, but once school starts up, the prices of that stuff probably ends up doubling after a month or two.
Wal-Mart, Target, Staples, Office Max, sometimes Hy-Vee even tend to be the cheapest places from what I can remember.
For the OP: I generally get things like notebooks, folders, loose paper, cheap-o pens, wood pencils, and all of those things fairly cheaply during the summer. I think Staples was having a thing last week? Maybe it's still going on though. 1 cent folders and notebooks and some other stuff. Not sure on the details of it though. Maybe it was Office Max though.
There are more/better deals in the beginning of summer, but once school starts up, the prices of that stuff probably ends up doubling after a month or two.
Wal-Mart, Target, Staples, Office Max, sometimes Hy-Vee even tend to be the cheapest places from what I can remember.
I didn't mean to come off like a jerk, but it's getting more ridiculous every year. And I don't blame the teachers one bit.
I think from now on, when the kids bring home a fundraiser, I'm going to go to their school and just give them $20 instead? If I buy $20 worth of junk food from my own kid... how much of that does the school actually get? I guess if I'm going to spend $20, I'd rather have ALL of it go to the school, not a portion of it.
One thing to add... my kid's school spends money like crazy on extravagant improvements to the school that go WAY beyond what is needed. Their new middle school has a brand new huge weightroom, fitness room, wrestling only room, etc.... for a MIDDLE SCHOOL! I didn't have one single piece of weightroom equipment in my middle school... we used the HS weightroom if we had to? They also have a top of the line computer lab as well. All of that stuff is great, and we pay a lot in taxes for it, but you'd think they could also afford teacher supplies then too?
I think from now on, when the kids bring home a fundraiser, I'm going to go to their school and just give them $20 instead? If I buy $20 worth of junk food from my own kid... how much of that does the school actually get? I guess if I'm going to spend $20, I'd rather have ALL of it go to the school, not a portion of it.
One thing to add... my kid's school spends money like crazy on extravagant improvements to the school that go WAY beyond what is needed. Their new middle school has a brand new huge weightroom, fitness room, wrestling only room, etc.... for a MIDDLE SCHOOL! I didn't have one single piece of weightroom equipment in my middle school... we used the HS weightroom if we had to? They also have a top of the line computer lab as well. All of that stuff is great, and we pay a lot in taxes for it, but you'd think they could also afford teacher supplies then too?