Bailout on Education?

It would be impossible to exist as a news-conscious citizen in the United States without having heard about and discussed the current financial crisis tearing holes in formerly steadfast and storied banks along the Wall Street corridor. In response, and under great strain and criticism of the court of public opinion, the United States government has provided a $700 billion dollar bailout of the failing institutions with a promise to spend upwards of a trillion dollars to ensure that the nation does not experience another Great Depression.

Of course, not a single American has been spared from this economic turmoil, and prices of goods only continue to rise, as do layoffs and debts. This only serves to make me wonder about what aspects of our American existence will be hardest hit in the months following the bailout and surrounding the presidential election. Given that educational initiatives have taken somewhat of a backseat throughout the course of presidential campaigning, I would not be surprised if the candidate’s plans for education reform were the first things to go.

Why, you ask? Well, the answer to that is simple. The improvement of education, while certainly an urgent issue, is not the most salient one in the minds of the American people. Why, you ask again? We are inherently shortsighted and accustomed to seeing immediate results. When we press send on an email, we are frustrated to have to wait more than 5 seconds for the correspondence to go through. When we have questions about compelling factual arguments, we can uncover answers within moments by performing a simple Internet search. When we want to speak to a friend or loved one, we have instant access to that person as a result of the prevalence of cell phones.

Yet, let’s face it, education is not a game of immediate victories. We test our children and wait for results. We walk our students through various levels of learning, but we must wait and see whether they will graduate, will matriculate to a university, will go on to utilize that knowledge we imparted upon them. Of courese, this entire endeavor is quite expensive, with the annual education budget for education in 2008 equaling 68.6 billion dollars.

Depending on the results of the election in November, this number might be even larger. While John McCain’s education platform does not seek to increase the federal budget to expand education initiatives, rather calling for a reallocation of the current budget, Barack Obama has rolled out a completely different plan. Currently, the Illinois senator’s education package calls for an increase in spending on education of 18 billion dollars, monies that would go towards higher pay and recruitment of better quality teachers, the expansion of charter schools, and the expansion of early childhood education through Head Start.

This plan, of course, was unveiled months ago, before the largest bailout in American history. So while our candidates are stomping for their election, they are also figuring out how to navigate this badly wounded economy that they will inherit. I wonder, will such domestic spending, as proposed by Obama, be possible now? If education is not an immediate issue to most voters, then it is hard to imagine them holding the candidates accountable for education reform in the face of major economic deficit and downturn.

Both candidates have gone on record saying that the bailout was necessary but needs oversight, and both have claimed that this will not hinder their platforms. However, neither Senator Obama nor Senator McCain has chosen to specifically address how the massive transfer of funds will effect the budget for education, perhaps the easiest place for candidates to justify a scaleback. After all, from the political perspective, while the system might be failing, at least everyone has access to education. This is not the case with regards to, say, health care or employment. So with just over 40 days left until the election, I am left wondering how the candidates will be able to deliver on their campaign promises when the fed has just delivered them some hefty financial baggage. I just hope that they are honest with us in advance.