Letters: Reader has changed mind about Jindal
First things, first; I am a retired public school administrator, on the board of my church school, and was probably as happy as anybody outside of Gov. Bobby Jindal’s family on the night he was elected. Recently, the Legislature, at the urging of the Jindal administration, has enacted major changes to the public school system in Louisiana.
At this time, I will only deal with one facet of that change. When the word “competition” is used in regard to who is succeeding and who is failing to provide a quality education to the children of Louisiana, the Jindal administration is being quite disingenuous.
Until the private and parochial schools of Louisiana, which, by the actions of the Legislature, have been granted access to public educational funds, are required to admit each and every child who seeks enrollment and who are handed a policies and procedures manual used by every public school in the state, along with the “scholarship” money provided by the taxpayers of Louisiana, don’t talk to me about “true competition.” I am a great believer in competition, both in the public and private sectors, and would consider what the Legislature has enacted if the above requirements were met. However, as to the Jindal administration’s definition of “competition,” a wise older gentleman once said, “Don’t pee on my shoe and tell me it’s raining”.
Steve Larson
real estate appraiser
New Iberia