The state governments are right now all over this great country grappling with how to make ends meet and unfortuantely it means that many states will be cutting education budgets. When educational budgets are cut it is not only a burden on the teachers, paraprofessionals, principals, and custodians but it is a burden on everybody in a community for the coming years. The two points that need to be made is the constiutional authority of the federal government to put mandates on the educational community and that the damage done to the future of a community.
1. The Constitution explicitly states that any powers not explicitly stated in the Constitution is delegated to the states, not to the federal government so Idaho should be able to decide what is best for their people and New York should be able to make their own laws and rules and regulations. While I do understand that when the constitution was written there was more independence between the states and they had a fear of the bigger states taking over the smaller states, but regardless of what the cultural/political difference is the fact of the matter is that it is unconstitutional to have a federal oversight of public schools
2. The cutback of funds to schools is making the future in a community a future that does not allow the students in some communities to have access to art, music or athletics. This also deprives the community of educators that help out by volunteers at librarys, churches and other opportunities to help the community and therefore the community loses a sense of duty that educators give a community. If funds continue to be cut further and further a generation down the road we will reap the rewards of this action.

When we think about how to make budgets work, we as americans need to consider the consequences before we think that cutting the educational budgets will then have no impact on the average Joe's life. It will have a significant consequence.