Letters: Federal funding doesn’t equal better schools

It seems like the headline of the column by U.S. Rep. Andre Carson—“Schools, families rely on federal funds for education”—describes the problem instead of the solution for our past and present, horrific performance [Forefront, April 11]. Please explain why your focus for our schools in this district is federal funding, rather than improving the status quo.

Your concern is that President Trump doesn’t have a plan. What’s your plan?

In November, Hoosiers in Indiana voted for massive change. We trusted you to be an effective voice for this necessary change. The federal government has a plan to give the power to the states. You are our representative, and this school district is performing worse than any other district in Indiana.

I believe you sincerely care, but thus far, money isn’t solving for our children’s improvement in our district. Perhaps we are focused and reliant on funds instead of effective educational programing with a grass roots partnership with families and local businesses.

We are paying educators in this district more than districts that outperform ours. What about public/private partnerships that focus on skill assessment and testing? How about educator bonuses tied to results? We could also shift some of the funds allocated to our community’s road repairs to this type of program.

So if you were to change the narrative without discussing a current component (such as federal funding, which hasn’t moved the needle positively), what would the narrative be?

—Scott Hockett