Our Voice: South Dakota lawmakers failing our educators

Instead of being part of the solution for South Dakota’s education system, our state lawmakers have become part of the problem. Providing adequate funding for education is vital to the future of our state, and our governor and state lawmakers are not living up to their end of the bargain.

In his December budget address, Governor Larry Rhoden proposed a zero-percent increase for education. While the legislative session included plenty of talk about finding more money for the K-12 system, it resulted in very little action. After all was said and done, the state settled on a 1.4% increase. This is simply not enough; it does not come close to matching the rising costs faced by school districts across the state.

In her recent “State of the District” address, Brookings Superintendent Summer Schultz outlined the financial challenges the district is facing. Declining enrollment, skyrocketing costs for fuel, insurance, and utilities—combined with a lack of adequate state support—have put the district in a financial pinch. Schultz had the unenviable task of identifying roughly $1 million in spending cuts. Without a doubt, other districts across South Dakota are in similar positions, facing the same tough decisions on how to make ends meet.

That 1.4% increase just isn’t cutting it.

Unfortunately, some of these cuts have arrived in the form of staff reductions. On Monday, the school board voted not to renew the contracts of three teachers for the next school year. This is a sad situation that might have been avoided had state lawmakers possessed the wherewithal to stand up for our children and secure proper funding.

According to state mandate, education funding should be raised at a rate tied to inflation (the “index factor”). This year, that rate should have been approximately 3%—or at least the 2.5% inflation figure cited during budget debates. For the second year in a row, our state lawmakers have failed to meet that mandate.

They are failing our teachers. They are failing our school boards. And worst of all, they are failing our children.