BUT BUREAUCRAT SALARIES WILL NEVER BE CUT

Parents, coaches rail against "pay to play" fees: "There are new clothes and supplies to buy and piano lessons to schedule. And for many parents across the country, the first day of school also entails some 'hidden' costs. Faced with shrinking budgets, schools are charging for things parents once took for granted: playing football or field hockey, singing in the glee club, or, in at least one case, accepting membership in the National Honor Society. Charges for extracurricular activities, commonly called 'pay to play' fees, are not new, but as more and more schools rely on them, parents and other critics are railing against a system they say denies access to a free public education. Last month, Massachusetts Speaker of the House Thomas Finneran vowed to explore ways to put an end to fees collected in his state. According to a recent survey by the Massachusetts Association of School Committees, some three-quarters of districts here charge extracurricular fees."




HOME SCHOOLING POWER

Great stuff: "Babette Hankin of Croyden, PA, likes to show off her home-schooling program. Not only do her seven children stay occupied all day, but the five of school age seem to thrive in her regimented rotation covering earth science, reading, math, and even piano practice. Yet despite pride in the program, Mrs. Hankin is suing the Bristol Township School District for requiring a yearly review. At dispute is the age-old but not yet settled question of who owns the children, and who therefore should oversee their education -- the parents, the state, or God? ... Hankin's is one of two landmark cases pending in Pennsylvania courts. In each, home-schooling families are using a new religious freedom law to fight what they see as state interference. Twelve states have recently passed similar laws, putting a potentially powerful tool in the hands of those who educate the nation's 1.1 million home-schooled children."