Investing your time....

Let us not be content to wait and see what will happen, 

but give us the determination to make the right things happen 

-- Peter Marshall

Over the years, I've spent quite a bit of time as an advocate for public education.  I do this because I believe, as many of our founding fathers did, that an uneducated public is a quick way to put an end to a free society. I do this because I have grandchildren who will attend public schools.  I do this because I want to remind our legislators that when they appropriate money for public education, it's not "paying for" education for our students, it's "investing in the education of" our students.


And, let's just talk about the "return on investment" when it comes to our kids! 


The students enrolled in our high schools right now will be the teachers, doctors, truck drivers, law enforcement officers, soldiers, parents, farmers, engineers, business owners and a myriad of other professionals who  will be the first in line to take the torch of leadership from our generation.  As we "age out" of the work force and "into" retirement, home health care, nursing homes, hospitals and assisted living communities, it is the students we're investing in right now who will "run the show"!


I want them to do well!


I have been very busy, personally and professionally, but when it comes to doing what's right for the 900,000 children in the state of Missouri, I feel a strong sense of urgency when it comes to legislative issues affecting education!  I think they are worth the investment!


At the Missouri School Boards Association Governmental Relations Center, in Jefferson City,  there is a quote on the wall that reads: "Education is the foundation of democracy."  This quote, long attributed to Thomas Jefferson sums up my strong feelings regarding public education. 


Thomas Jefferson believed in a society where talent and virtue should be educated regardless of wealth, birth or any other condition.  He believed that democracy could not long exist without eduction, that the education of our children should come at the common expense of our people and that without wise elected officials at every level, our education system could not thrive. 


Thomas Jefferson saw public education, quite literally, as the means of insuring political liberty for every generation!


My challenge to you is to go online right now and start gathering information about legislation you're interested in. Whether it's education, or another area that affects your life,  see to it that your voice is heard in your state capitol and in the nation's capitol. Develop a determination within you to give your best, do your best, and to encourage others to do the same.


Blessings!


Sharon