Governor Mark Parkinson obviously felt he had little choice but to include K-12 and higher education in the budget cuts in an effort to get Kansas' finances under control. Many legislators have been pushing to make sure education "shares the burden" of getting the state's budget back in black, and it that will be the case.

I don't have all the answers. I am not going to say which areas should be cut and which should be kept at current levels, but I do not believe education should be cut back so much. K-12 is being pushed back to 2006 per-student levels of funding, levels that were considered inadequate at the time. Some teachers will have to teach combination classrooms of multiple grade levels. Many educators believe there is a direct correlation between funds spent on education and positive student achievement.

Just a few years ago, school districts in Kansas were searching from outside state, even country borders trying to fill teaching positions. Now, they face the prospect of trying to bring in fresh, new teachers to school districts that are underfunded and frankly, are not hiring like they were before.

Furthermore, these kids represent the future of the state. They will now have a higher teacher-to-student ratio and fewer resources. We're looking at the very real opportunity of raising kids in Kansas who are less educated and have fewer opportunities than their parents. In the long run, we are also looking at graduating less capable workers and fewer students who can make it to college, much less graduate. And these are the future leaders who will be calling the shots in Kansas.

What do you think? Was this the right move? Are there other ways to cut the budget down? How do we save education in Kansas? let me know!