Rant

I am not one to rant (too much! I try to do it more subtly) in my blogs, but something I saw today really has touched a nerve. As most of you are aware, I live in a little place called Texarkana, which is supposed to be "Twice as Nice." We are a unique city in that in our downtown, there is a State Line and half of the city (approximately, you get the picture) is in Texas and half in Arkansas. There is a lot of silliness that goes on around town about the Texas side being better or the Arkansas side being better (and of course, being born and raised on the Texas side, I have some opinions on the issue, even if they are silly!!!). But today, I saw something that made me mad and sad at the same time.

In Texas, we have higher property taxes because we do not have a state income tax, so the property taxes kind of make up the difference. The Texas legislature has been giving property tax breaks recently, resulting in a decrease in property taxes. Accordingly, the school boards on the Texas side have taken full advantage of the decreased property taxes in order to pass bonds so that the schools get money. Smart move and the bonds pass because the Texas side prides themselves on taking care of the kids, schools, and sports teams (probably not the greatest example, but ... the truth). Renovations all around for many of the schools on the Texas side. Nice properties, nice playgrounds, new computers, flatscreens in many classrooms, lots of things to spread around town to say "come to our schools." I may not agree with all of it, but I am proud that they showed some initiative and that the people around town voted yes "for the kids."

On the Arkansas side, the property taxes are supposed to be lower because of the state income tax. The Supreme Court of Arkansas has also determined that too many of the schools are subpar and that something must be done about it. To do something about it, the schools need money. What better way to obtain funding and have the citizens invest in the schooling of the next generation than to pass a bond. Except that the Arkansas citizens do not want to pass the bond. I guess they do not understand how it works because all I hear is that the administration is making too much money (which is probably less than the football coach at T-High, but we won't go there) and the bond money will just result in larger salaries for the administration. What? That doesn't even make sense. Bond money goes to construction projects, materials, renovations, property, not salaries. I guess that indirectly it could affect salaries because there is more wiggle room in the budget. The other reason that Arkansas claims that it doesn't need to pass the bond is because it would make the property taxes too high and make the land on the Arkansas side unable to compete with the Texas side. I know that I did not want to move to the Arkansas side even if the taxes were lower because of personal preference. If I had kids, I really would not want to move to the Arkansas side. Which gets us to my point (finally!).

Today I was able to attend a pizza party for children at an Arkansas elementary school. As a young lawyer, I am periodically called upon to give back to the community and to go to schools to teach kids or just present to kids to let them know what kind of future they can have if they stay in school. I love to teach Junior Achievement, which is a program where professionals in the community go to teach for several weeks about community, and because of this program, I have had the opportunity to be in several elementary schools on the Texas side. At the Arkansas elementary school, I was surprised and disappointed at the facilities. To put it politely, major renovations need to be done. Major work on the interior of the building. Needed new technology upgrades, etc. From what I understand, most of the elementary schools on the AR side are this way. How sad that the citizens cannot see that the children need better facilities! The environment affects the moods of the teachers which, in turn, affects the moods of the kids. To the credit of the school itself, you can tell they have tried to improve what they have on their own (pond type thing as you walk in, self-paint jobs in some of the rooms and hallways, etc.), and we should be thankful that they care about the environment these kids are being educated in. At some point the community must step up. These people that vote against the bond are the same ones that will be complaining about the crime and attitudes of the teenagers in town a few years down the road, but will not see that they contributed to it by failing to take interest in the kids.

There is my rant for the day. If you have kids, please don't move to the Arkansas side and put them in the Arkansas education system, or if you must live in Arkansas, put them in private school. Texarkana, Arkansas clearly does not care about their kids as a community.

Disclaimer -- I am not proposing that I am an expert on the bond issue or what it was for or how well drafted it was. All I know is that Txk, AR is giving the appearance of not caring about kids to the Txk, TX side. I also do not believe that the only contributing factor to crime is the failure to have pretty buildings. I am only saying that when children already have some strikes against them at home, make the schools a true safe haven and pleasant place to be.