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OPINION — Every morning, I walk into a public school in Mesa as a student. I go to class, learn from my teachers, work with my classmates and eventually go home. From the outside, it would be easy to think my education begins and ends in those classrooms.
As a high school senior, I know it doesn’t.
My education is also shaped by counselors, nurses, school safety staff, technology, transportation, maintenance employees and countless others whose work students may never fully see. They may not stand at the front of a classroom, but students experience the impact of their work every day.
That is the perspective I bring to Proposition 320.
The measure would require certain Arizona school districts to spend at least 60% of operational spending on direct instructional expenses, with the Arizona auditor general responsible for defining those terms. I understand why that sounds appealing. I want great teachers, strong classrooms and resources reaching students.
My concern is with treating one spending percentage as the answer.
Students do not experience schools as budget categories. We experience one school. A counselor can help a student graduate. Transportation gets students to class. Specialized services help students participate in their education. In Arizona, even working air conditioning can affect whether a classroom is a reasonable place to learn.
Districts also face different needs. Transportation, facilities and student support can look very different from one community to another.
I support accountability and responsible spending, but local flexibility matters, too. A spending percentage can tell us something important about a school district. It cannot tell us everything.
From where I sit — literally, in a classroom — education is not one line on a budget. It is the entire system surrounding a student.
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