Money won’t solve education problems

The Daily Herald reported recently that Gov. Quinn’s Health Care Reform Council released its initial recommendations. It seems they want a state law forcing insurers to spend 80 to 85 cents of every dollar on providing health care. While we all can appreciate the need for cost effectiveness in the medical insurance business, I would think that incentive would apply to other areas as well, like education.

Apparently our good governor doesn’t realize that only about 40 cents of every dollar goes into the classroom. That’s right, about 60 cents goes to administration. Many years ago 60 cents went into the classroom.

Gov. Quinn apparently also isn’t aware that we spend 300 percent more per student, in constant dollars, then we did 40 years ago and have only declining performance to show for it. So shoving more money in that direction is counterproductive.

That makes his push as a candidate last fall for a 1 percent increase in the state income tax to go for education even more appalling. If he is serious about efficiency in education perhaps he could appoint an Education Reform Council. Perhaps one of their recommendations would be a mandate that no additional money will go to education until a minimum of 60 cents of every dollar goes into the classroom.

Could his relationship with the teachers unions be dampening his enthusiasm for reform here? One gets the impression that some of our elected officials either haven’t a clue or may be corrupt. I am starting to empathize with the Egyptian protesters.

Richard Kaiser

Elk Grove Village