School Census
Every three years we are contacted by the County Public Schools to complete a census of “school-aged children”. Every three years I decline to participate.
Why?
Because they use this census to determine how much of 1% of the state’s sales tax each school gets. My kids don’t go to the government’s schools. The school shouldn’t receive money for educating them.
I’m fairly certain that at one time a former member of the school board told me on another blog– that has since self destructed– that funding for the schools was based on actual enrollment. Perhaps some of the funding is determined that way, but obviously not all. This census asks you to fill out information on any young person whose age falls between 1 and 19. Including children enrolled in privates schools, preschool programs, schooled at home, at collage or in the military. Why should the government run schools get money to educate a child they are not even paying to educate? According to this and this, 10% percent of children nation wide attend a private school. The public school system isn’t paying for that; the parents are. Likewise, the 2.2% (and growing) that are educated at home are not the financial responsibility of the government’s schools.
Until the funds gathered by the sales tax are distributed to those actually educating the children I will continue to follow the advice of Home School Legal Defence and send this in reply: “We decline to participate in this voluntary school census. Thank you very much.” I encourage all other parents that are financially responsible for their children’s education to do the same.
Click to see the silliness the school system sent me.
My congratulations! Anybody who can should take responsibility over the education of their children. What insanity provokes people to entrust the education of their children to politicians?!!!!
Why do you find public school financing so weird? Aside from the fact too many politicians have their own conniving ambitions, government is run like a committee. Because everybody is in charge, nobody is in charge. School Boards in Viriginia, for example, are funded (and receive mandates from), Congress, the General Assembly, and the Board of County Supervisors. Effectively, in addition to the School Board, each school superintendent is answerable to four committees of bosses.
Whenever you think you have it bad at work, consider how much you ought to be pitying the superintendent of your county’s school division.
Comment by Citizen Tom | 03/4/08 8:23 am
Hello! I just have a simple question. If my child is not in a school because she is only 17 months old….. Do you know if I still need to fill out the census form? And if I choose not to will my county that I’m currently living in will they nail me for taxes later on by charging ten times more even though for the first five years she did not attend a public school? She probably will not go to school for another 4 years or maybe longer.
Sincerely,
Holly
Comment by Holly | 04/8/08 2:44 pm