School funding request deserves support
My wife and I moved our young family to Mount Prospect in 1968. Our four daughters all attended District 57 schools for their primary grades and then moved on to Prospect High School.
They each received an excellent education enriched by extracurricular activities. They all went on to well-known colleges and received bachelor degrees. Among them, additionally, are four master's degrees and a CPA. In addition, we have 3 grandchildren who have gone through District 57. Again, they have received quality educations.
Going forward, District 57 faces severe restrictions on the quality of education it will be able to provide unless it receives significant additional funding. The citizens of the community are being asked to dig down and sacrifice so that current and future students will be able to receive the same quality education that our family got. We are proud to support the district's funding request.
The funding need is immediate and urgent. However, going forward, we should insist that the state of Illinois meet its constitutional obligation to provide one-half of local school funding.
To make that feasible, we must have a graduated income tax so that the wealthy among us begin to pay their fair share. Additionally, we must close the loopholes that allow one-half of all Illinois corporations reportedly to pay no income tax. If these changes are made, then, long-term, our local property taxes can be significantly reduced.
Kent Kirkwood
Mount Prospect