The Kult Of Kentucky!

 On my ballot in Kentucky this year is an initiative which would allow a change to the state's constitution. It's called "Amendment 2" and it reads in part thusly:

"The General Assembly may provide financial support for the education of students outside the system of common schools." 

Such a change would allow the Republican super-majority in the Commonwealth's legislature to generate funding or shift funds to private schools such as charter schools and other private institutions, as well potentially religious schools. The latter seems a clear violation of the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, but I rather suspect the current Supreme Court would support this outlay of tax funds. If such would be the case, I as a taxpayer would be supporting a religion I did not necessarily share. 

Even more immediate is that Kentucky public schools are generally strapped for funding despite being in the top half (barely) of the states in the nation. We were once near the bottom of the rankings. Nearly all of that improvement resulted from a court decision way back in 1991, at the beginning of my career which transformed funding in the state. For nearly fifteen years the state's schools saw tremendous improvements (relatively speaking of course) but in this century, slowly and bit by bit the changes made as a result of the 1991 ruling have been chipped away. As the reforms and the money have withered so have the results, especially in many of the counties in my state which are poor. Kentucky has the honor of having the poorest county in the nation within its borders. As it turned out my late wife was from that county. 

Another reason for these changes is one which won't be discussed openly - a desire to racially resegregate the schools. The schools in Kentucky were forced to desegregate when I was a young student in the late 60's. It didn't matter much in my isolated Appalachian community as there were virtually no people of another race living there. But in places like Louisville there was violence. Race animus fuels so much of American politics.

I don't know how this vote will go, but if this amendment wins passage, we will almost immediately see a wholesale strip mining of public-school resources. My eldest daughter still teaches publics school and the need for teachers is so desperate that I don't fear for her job. But I do dread that her job will become more and more difficult as tax funds meant to support her efforts for all Kentucky students regardless of race, creed, or color are siphoned away so that upper-class Christian white folks can get a break on private school tuition. 

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