Legislators hear plea to fund schools.

Byline: David Steves The Register-Guard

SALEM - Parents and educators gave up a slice of their spring break Wednesday night to let lawmakers know the kind of trouble schools will be in without more tax dollars.

The Education Subcommittee of the Joint Ways & Means Committee scheduled the evening hearing so parents and educators wouldn't have to miss work.

The event drew about 50 people, many of whom testified that the different funding levels being discussed for schools would harm their ability to teach children.

For the upcoming 2003-05 spending cycle, Gov. Ted Kulongoski has proposed $5.05 billion, but lawmakers say the budget could shrink to as low as $4.6 billion, because revenues have continued to plunge.

At the outset of Wednesday's hearing, the education budget panel's chairwoman, Rep. Susan Morgan, R-Myrtle Creek, warned speakers in advance that as a Ways & Means subcommittee, its role was limited to determining how to spend available dollars.

"This is not a revenue committee. We don't entertain in this committee issues that relate to raising revenue," she said.

But many of the educators and parents who spoke out said they couldn't talk about the level of spending without talking about the need for more money.

Eugene school volunteer and parent Joan Obie told lawmakers that for years - and particularly during the current year's budget squeeze - educators and administrators have done their best "to accomplish the impossible" without adequate support from the state - a commitment she hasn't sensed on the part of lawmakers.

"I see no solution coming from you, our state leaders," Obie said, adding that unless "someone in charge is bold enough" to provide enough tax money for schools, "we, Oregon, will continue to be the poster child for failing school systems."

Given the crunch of the past year, educators and parents brought with them a litany of reductions and erosions that already have taken place, as well as warnings against making things worse with additional teacher and support-staff layoffs, elimination of courses and school days.

Debra Robinson, a teacher at Parkrose Middle School in east Portland, said her school, built for 450 students, now serves 890. She has 37 students in one class and of those, five are learning English, eight have special education needs, and others have behavior problems.

Bob Walker, a Roseburg High School teacher, told lawmakers that his school's teacher layoffs and staffing reductions have meant fewer electives such as elective math, science and business classes and shop courses.

"A lot of these classes are what keep kids in school," he said.

Oskie Osana, a teacher at Marshfield High School in Coos Bay, sobbed as she read through the litany of closed schools, depleted teaching staffs, broken-down playground equipment that is removed but not replaced, and invitations for music groups to perform out of town that must be turned down because of lack of money.

Despite the consistent message from parents, students and educators that schools are at an unprecedented risk of failing Oregon's children, it was delivered in a more subdued fashion than in past legislative sessions.

With human services for elderly, needy and disabled Oregonians in a crisis because of the revenue shortfall, schools have not held the spotlight they usually command when competing with other demands for state dollars.

And the coinciding spring break made it more difficult to rally people to the Capitol, said education lobbyist John Marshall, who added that this time the strategy wasn't to overwhelm lawmakers.

"We tried to go for quality rather than loading up the school buses," said Marshall, who represents the Oregon School Boards Association.