Education budget cuts and their impacts on learning

Education Budget Cuts

Education is one of the most important issues in the Western world today. It dictates the future of millions of young people per year, and by association also the future of the country whose workforce these young, educated adults will join. It is therefore vital that the government provides whatever resources are necessary to provide young people with as many skills and as much knowledge as necessary to contribute as much as possible to the country's output. When budget cuts are therefore at issue, the expectation should be that education is to enjoy the highest priority in terms of monetary allocation, particularly at the college level. When budget cuts were implemented for tertiary institutions in California, this principle was the cause of great controversy regarding not only the budget, but also the future of tertiary education in the state.

According to Chea (2009), one of the main repercussions of the introduced budget cuts was the fact that those students who pay for tuition would now have to pay more for less: specifically, crowded classrooms and less access to faculty and counselors, along with fewer campus services and more difficultty in obtaining the classes that they need would be part of the new budget plan.

One of the main reasons for the budget cuts is the fact of stee[p declines in tax revenue. These have forced states ot reduct public college and unviersity funds across the country, not only in California. On the other hand, the steep cuts could also undermine the current administration's goal to make the country a world leader in college graduates by 2020. Budget cuts means that fewer students will have access to a college education. Hence, fewer students can graduate and ultimately contribute towards this goal.

California is most particularly affected by this policy, as it has some 3 million students attending college, with 110 community colleges, and 23 campuses for the California State University and 10 campuses for the University of California. The latter is oen of the leading research institutes in the United States.

California universities have responded to the situation in whichever ways they could, including raising fees, cutting student admissions, expanding class sizes, eliminating programs, and laying off staff. According to one interviewee, the budget cuts were the worst in 30 years.

As mentioned, the issue was not only laid-off workers or students who could not fund their college eduation. It consisted of the ability of the entire country to maintain its workforce and the excellence of its education system for the benefit of both individuals and collective industries. According to Chea (2009), the cuts would culminate in a pronounced lack of skills in terms of the workforce, as well as the ability of the country to produce the highest quality of research. More specifically, the author also noted that the state would have a shortage of almost 1 million college-educated workers by 2025, even without the current budget cuts. With the cuts, the situation could be even worse.

The author also notes that California's three-tierd system of higher aducation has historically been tth emodel of access, affordability and academic excellence fot he tsutndets it produced. Indeed, the state's economic growth and technological innovation relied on a system that was accessible to all its residents.

The core reason for the current budget problem, however, lay in the recent economic downturn, which necessitated budget cuts throughout industies. This resultedin budget cuts of 20% for both the University of California and the California State university. The University of Claifornia, according to Chea (2009), had about 220,000 students. The higher fees reduced freshman enrollent by 6%, resultin gin a cut of at least $300 million from it 10 campuses collectively. The situation is so dire that many academic professionals believe that the very future of industries such as science and technology is in jeopardy as a result of the budget cuts.

Although advocates are of the opnion that the increase in fees can be offset by exapnded financial aid, many low-income families will be unable to send their children to college. In a practical sense, far fewer students of college age will therefore be able to in fact enter California universities as a result of the budget cuts. A further challenge is the surge in military veterans and unemployed workers seeking training to expand their job proscpects.

According to Martinez (2009), the governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger, imposed a set of proposals that would significantly impact all of California's education budget, making up a significant part of the state's $24 million budget shortfall. Indeed, social programs an public education would have to make do with $15 billion in cuts. When considered in total, this culmianted in $3,000 less per student in the state. In addition to the above-mentioned changes in class and college programs, the state would also face a delay in funds for textbooks and an elimination of vital programs such as physical education, summer school, special education, and others.

Significanlty, the Cal Grant program, which would offer students financial assistance when they meet grade point average requirements in the state, was implemented to assist promising students. This was a particularly helpful program, as students did not need to pay these back, unlike a regular student loan. By this year, it was projected that all Cal Grants would be phased out as a result. In addition, those who started college with Cal Grants, would have to begin making up the difference in funding from their own pockets, which could range from hundreds to several thousands of dollars.

The quality of all remaining education would also be affected, meaning that equipment and supply purchases would be frozen, along with travel expenses for employees. This would impact the quality of education remaining for those students still able to attend the college. Furthermore, it would also impact the ability of existing teachers to provide quality education based upon their interaction with nation- and worldwide education entities. Proper education could not be provided without a sound basis of research, which could only be conducted on the basis of the ability to travel and obtain resources for good research and education.

At the same time, the current budget cuts were not the only issue resulting in the veritable chaos of budget cuts. Indeed, historical budget cuts also influence the curernt budget in terms of quality education and the ability of students to enter college (Paddock, 2008). According to Paddock (2008), one of the greates issues related to the current budget cuts is the fact that California colleges and universities have not yet recovered from previous budget cuts. The long-term effects of these could therefore be devastating. Accoridng ot the author, local colleges could take as long as 10 years to recover.

Specifically, California Unviersity and California State University would have to reduce enrollment by 27,000 over two and a half years simply to cope with budget cuts. The related problem is that the potential income form these students could be lost. Furthermore, these cuts would increasingly drive universities towards a greater reliance upon student fees, which woul lead to the increasing privatization of colleges in the state.

According to the author, studies done at the time concluded that current fees would have to increase to $10,500, almost $3,000 more than the $7,511 annual fee charged for students at the time. Furthermore, fees at the University of California could rise to as much as $18,000 within only a few years. This, along with the lack of funding for in terms of bursuries and other educational programs, could lead to an education crisis, not only for the individual students involved, but also for the collective education level of the state, its future labor force, and also of the country as a whole. The result, according to Paddock (2008), would be a move away from the University as a public entity and towards a public-private institution, which is primarily funded by student fees.

The various crises imposed by the budget cuts culminated not only in these effects, but were perpetuated by later budget cuts, as cited by authors such as Hemmila (2011). Indeed, in the budget proposal for 2011-12, the governor proposed cuts that would further include a $500 million reduction in fees to support the Universitiy of California. This will create a situation, for the first time in the history of the University, by which income from student revenues would surpass the state's contribution to the institution's finances. As a result, it is estimated that the institution's enrollment numbers would be reduced by 73,600 students when the new budget is implemented.

One important element in these budget estimations, according to Hemmila (2011), is the fact that many do not acknowledge the role of the recession in the budget cuts. The problem is that funding is simply not available, either for education or other vital components of society. Whichever argument is therefore forwarded against the budget cuts, there is little that can be done to refute the reality of the current economy. The state cannot allocate funding that is simply not available.

This is also manifest in the funding allocated to the community college system in the state, which would be reduced by $400 million. Leaders from the three higher education systems in the state are, however, particularly unhappy by the cuts, holding that current trends demand a growth rather than a cut in higher education.

Importantly from the government's point-of-view, all funding recipients across the country have faced a reduction in grants from the government. In the current economic climate, it is simply not possible to provide all industries and funding recipients with the funding they were hoping for. Education, however, is an issues of extreme importance for students and family alike, as demonstrated by the thousands who protested against yet further funding cuts and tuition increases across the Californian state (McKinley, 2010).

According to McKinley (2010), the protest was referred to as a "strike and day of action to defend public education. It culminated in the arrest of more than 150 people after they stopped traffic and blocked entrances to roads and learning institutions. Protesting students made the point that they could hardly be expected to "save the future" if they were denied access to quality education. Increasing tuition fees and cuts in classes and courses simply could not constitute a good education. Students in Santa Cruz protested by blocking access to the city's University of California campus, intimidating visitors and breaking public property such as windshields.

Teachers from cities such as Richmond also protested against the escalating number of students per class, which causes not only difficulty in the learning and teaching process itself, but also in helping students handle problems that impact their learning. Although many vowed to continue protesting until their point has been made, there are also those who did not see a large amount of effect as a reward for their efforts.

Whether people protest or not, authors such as Brand (2010) continue to wonder whether the public university system in the state will ever recover from the numerous cuts it has fallen victim to. After the latest 2010 rebudgeting issues, it appears that the question is no longer whether the University will recover within the space of ten years. The question is now whether the public education in California will ever be the same again. There seems to have been many changes, where the public could expect an increase in fees but a decrease in service excellence. This has been the effect and the nature of the cuts over the last years. One can hardly blame those who protest against it.

The fact remains that education is one of the most important privileges of the modern world. Indeed, one might refer to it as a right rather than a privelege, as it creates prospects for a better job and a better future for everybody. For this reason, one might argue that the state should not make cuts to education budgets at all, and that the money to fund it should be found from cutting other, less crucial budgets.

Those make those arguments could have a point. Surely tax dollars used to fight a war that nobody believes in could be better applied to the future of the nation's young. Also, many of these tax dollars have been invested in increasign security measures at locations such as airports. These also have culminated in increased inconvenience for travelers.