"The foundation of every state is the education of its youth." (Diogenes Laertius)Yeah, we’d like to think so, but how is that going right now in Luverne? Not so well, I’d say. To reiterate what many have already said, Luverne’s education budget has given up almost $650,000 in the last few years. $650,000! As a Luverne student with three and one-half years left in school, that scares me (not to mention my two younger brothers who still have many more years left of school). By the time I’m a senior, will there be anything left of the quality school we’ve always bragged about?With the budget cuts, many teachers’ positions were cut, and many others were forced to take on extra work WITHOUT EXTRA PAY.Many are already aware of some of the programs that have been cut, including all-day-every-day kindergarten, the Future Images (gifted) program, and sixth grade guitars, just to name a few. Also they are looking at cutting some of the college preparation and speech classes that are currently offered. For students, activity fees are skyrocketing. For example, there are two different overall fees students have to pay for two different types of activities. Sports and fine arts. On top of that, there is a fee for each individual activity one might want to be in. For example, to be in choir and band this year I had to pay $35 for the encompassing fine arts fee, $35 for the choir fee, and $50 for the band fee. That is $120 for two activities, a substantial increase over the last few years. Quite recently, the temperature in the school was decreased by four degrees to lower fuel costs.As Malcolm Forbes said, "It’s so much easier to suggest solutions when you don’t know too much about the problem." That’s all I have to say to those of you who think MORE cuts and fee raises are the answer. I encourage everyone to understand this issue completely before voting, because the outcome will determine the future of our school and the lives of our students. Vote "yes" on the referendum.Matt Stensland-BosLuverne
