In the past few days, the news has been full of discussion centered around what the election results mean for our country. On my drives into work in the morning, I flip through the radio stations and yesterday I landed on NPR. They were of course analyzing the results and providing feedback from exit polls. One statement they made that stood out to me was that the majority of people leaving the exit polls expressed that they thought our children will experience much more difficulty in their life as they grow to be adults. That had me thinking all day long. What are we doing with those children to equip them to not only be future leaders but to also deal with any adversity they may face in life?
Then this morning, listening to a completely different radio station, they brought up a recent report that the Iowa prison population is projected to increase by 39% by the year 2024--only ten years from now. Iowa does not have the capacity to deal with that amount of growth, nor should it. (http://thegazette.com/subject/news/public-safety/prisons/report-iowa-prison-population-set-to-grow-39-percent-by-2024-20141105). According to Begin to Read (http://www.begintoread.com/research/literacystatistics.html) 2/3 of students who are not reading at grade level by 4th grade will end up in prison or welfare. Although the state is taking strides to make sure they are being proactive with Chapter 62, there is still little known on how they will ensure that students are ready and able to read at grade level by the end of 3rd grade.
Here is my proposal. No matter what side of the aisle you sit on or lead towards, we all share a stake in the future. We NEED to pull together for our future. The kids that we serve and my own kids are the ones that these reports are talking about and I am not ready to allow our future to go into the world unprepared and looking at higher prison rates. My vote is to take a stand each and every day to make a difference. What's your vote?
