Dear next President,

I am a junior at West Albany High School and our education system is rigged. State and local school funding not only fails to educate those who cannot pay for it, it simultaneously increases the gap of inequality. This makes obtaining a higher paying job through education nearly impossible for those that need it most. The American dream is to get a good education and make a name for yourself, but with our education system’s flaws, more and more children are falling victim to the cycle of poverty.

While state and local funding does well in a community that can support it, in the places like inner cities, where poverty levels are high, the severe lack of funding makes properly running a school an impossible task. Children need something to be invested in, and if their education fails them, they will give up on it. Without safe places like schools for children to go to, they follow the path of gangs and drugs.

In our society, poor education creates a plethora of problems. One is creating a larger population in need of support from the government; this raises taxes and makes life harder for everyone. Another is the inequality gap. With a lack of education comes a lack of ability to improve one’s situation. How is someone who can’t even go to high school supposed to break the cycle of poverty and acquire a job with a higher standard of living? Poor schooling is also detrimental to the economy. With so much lost potential in the incoming workforce people don’t have the ability to create and share ideas to further economy. Instead, even more people fall into the cycle of poverty, and when nobody can buy anything, the economy falls.

The solution is education for all. If everyone had access to a good education, poverty levels would greatly decrease, the economy would increase, and everyone would have a better standard of living. As Nelson Mandela once said, “ education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” We need educational reform so America can continue to grow and prosper without stepping on the backs of the less fortunate to do so.

Sincerely,

Morgan Flaugher