Wake up, Sleeping Beauty, this is your big day!

The past few months have been confusing and frustrating times here in Pasco land. Most of us just woke up to the reality of what is going on in our schools, and we are still trying to get the little crusties out of our eyes so that we can more clearly see what's in front of us. It's been scary. It's been confusing. It's been frustrating. It's been exhausting. I'd be lying if I didn't confess that many days I just want to shout, "Five more minutes, Mom!" and close my eyes and go back to the happy sleep of not knowing. Ignorance is bliss right? It was easy just assuming that everything was fine. It was so relaxing not having to think about these big, complex issues.  But we aren't asleep any more. No matter how tight we keep clutching our pillow and squeezing our eyes shut, we can't  go back to that dream. We are awake. We are adults. And for good or for bad, we are responsible. Now brush out that bed hair of yours and let's get started.

So what is it we need to do today?

Pass the levy.

I know. I know. I can hear you groaning from way over here.  I HATE talking about the levy too. It is soooooo boring. I get it. But it is one of the dirty jobs that grownups have to do. So even though I'd rather talk about something more interesting (like the new Star Wars movie or my new favorite recipe for for tortilla soup) we are going to talk about about the levy. Today, tomorrow, and every day until it passes.

Pass the levy, you must.

I'd love to see this served in our cafeterias!

For all of our sakes, though, I will keep it short.

There have been a lot of people lately saying they don't want to vote for the levy because they aren't happy with the way PSD has been spending their money in the past. I TOTALLY GET THAT.  I am not at all happy with what they have and have not spent money on in the past either. However, today is a new day. Things are different now. They are different in two ways. First, we have clear contract language that makes very specific demands about where that money must be spent (i.e. curriculum, supplies, teacher pay). Second, we are all awake and watching to make sure they follow through on their end of the bargain.

Let me explain it one more time.

For the past twenty years or so (while we were all sleeping) we have been paying PSD a certain amount of money every year for the education of our children. We did this because we all believe education is important and we agreed that a certain amount of money was necessary to make that happen. We did this with out ever checking to see where our money was going or how it was being spent. Since we were all asleep then, we really have no idea where all that money went. Nevertheless we gave this money willingly without any accountability.

Now we are awake.  We all still agree that education is important, and we all know that a certain amount of money is necessary to make that happen. But now we are watching. Now we have contractual guarantees about where our money is going. Now we have thousands of eyes and ears holding the district accountable to how and where our money is spent.  There has never been a better time to spend money on Pasco Schools. There has never been a better reason to pass a levy.

You all gave your money willingly when you had no way of knowing if it was doing any good. Now I am asking you to keep giving your money (the same amount, a little less even, not any more) to PSD when we have a real chance of making sure it goes to all the right places.

You were gambling before. This is a sure thing now.

We finally have all the right pieces in play, don't quit the game now.

Please vote YES for Pasco schools.