GOP Budget cuts will hurt North Carolina schools and colleges

House Bill 200, otherwise known as the State Budget Act, passed with a vote of 72 to 47 in the House and will now go to the Senate. If HB 200 stays in its current form, it will hurt North Carolina’s K-12 schools, public community colleges and universities, as well as schoolteachers and professors. Being a need-based college student who goes to Western Carolina University, I have seen in the past year how much the university has had to cut back on professors and whole classes. I can’t imagine what will happen when these bigger cuts hit.

Community colleges will be hit the hardest, with a 50 percent reduction of need-based scholarships. As a former student of A-B Tech, I would not have been able to afford college without this important financial assistance. Proponents of the bill say that it doesn’t put teachers’ jobs in jeopardy, but aims to eliminate non-classroom and assistant teacher positions from second and third grade.

Those assistant teachers provide more one-on-one instruction for our elementary school students. As many of you know, elementary school is when young children learn some of the most important cognitive skills.

I am in total agreement that the government should practice fiscal responsibility, but trimming money from the education sector in this way is totally irresponsible. The cuts will reduce 8.8 percent from the overall K-12 budget, 11 percent from the community colleges and 15 percent from our universities. The best way to fight against these cuts in education is to call and write your state legislators and tell them not to cut the education budget.

— Matthew Del Corral
Candler

SHARE

Thanks for reading through to the end…

We share your inclination to get the whole story. For the past 25 years, Xpress has been committed to in-depth, balanced reporting about the greater Asheville area. We want everyone to have access to our stories. That’s a big part of why we've never charged for the paper or put up a paywall.

We’re pretty sure that you know journalism faces big challenges these days. Advertising no longer pays the whole cost. Media outlets around the country are asking their readers to chip in. Xpress needs help, too. We hope you’ll consider signing up to be a member of Xpress. For as little as $5 a month — the cost of a craft beer or kombucha — you can help keep local journalism strong. It only takes a moment.

About Webmaster
Mountain Xpress Webmaster Follow me @MXWebTeam

Before you comment

The comments section is here to provide a platform for civil dialogue on the issues we face together as a local community. Xpress is committed to offering this platform for all voices, but when the tone of the discussion gets nasty or strays off topic, we believe many people choose not to participate. Xpress editors are determined to moderate comments to ensure a constructive interchange is maintained. All comments judged not to be in keeping with the spirit of civil discourse will be removed and repeat violators will be banned. See here for our terms of service. Thank you for being part of this effort to promote respectful discussion.

3 thoughts on “GOP Budget cuts will hurt North Carolina schools and colleges

  1. cwaster

    Why not keep all the poor people stupid with little to no access to education? That way, if you are a GOP politician you can force them to do whatever you want. Oh and by the way, rich folks will still get plenty of education as they will be the only ones able to afford it.
    Pretty soon, you’ll have the choice to be any kind of white, rich, straight, republican christian you want to be, in my humble opinion. Machiavelli would be proud.

  2. bill smith

    I agree with cwaster. Educating the plebes only gives them silly ideas. Keep their heads down and their feet bare!

  3. Hugh Akston

    “It’s a pity we can’t just kill the beast, this slow starvation is inhumane.”

    Ronald Reagan

Leave a Reply to bill smith ×

To leave a reply you may Login with your Mountain Xpress account, connect socially or enter your name and e-mail. Your e-mail address will not be published. All fields are required.