Page 10 - Florida Sentinel 8-31-18

Local
Voters Tell Why They
School Board Approves Referendum For November Ballot
BY KENYA WOODARD Sentinel Feature Writer
Voters celebrate Andrew Gillum at Watch Party.
Laryssia Marsh was prepared to vote for Gwen Graham in Tuesday’s Democratic Gubernatorial Primary.
But when Graham, a former Congresswoman, didn’t attend a Gubernato- rial Political Forum hosted earlier this month by the Hillsborough County Branch NAACP, she switched her vote to Talla- hassee mayor Andrew Gillum, the only candidate who appeared.
“He was the only candi- date to show up to the forum,” said Marsh, a Tampa resident. “Gwen was my candidate, but he showed up.”
Marsh and hundreds of thousands of other voters returned the favor and showed up for Gillum, casting votes that led to his securing the Democratic nomination over Graham. He now faces Republican challenger U. S. Rep. Ron DeSantis in the November General Election.
Marsh and other sup- porters who gathered at C.1949 in the Lowry Park area to watch the returns come in and celebrate
Left to right: Laryssia Marsh, Kimberly Williams, and Amina Spahic at the Gillum Watch Party.
Cast Ballots For
Andrew Gillum
Last Friday, the Hillsbor- ough County School Board voted to ask county residents to support school-based needs such as air condition- ing, new school construction and renovation of our exist- ing schools through a refer- endum on a countywide ballot on November 6, 2018.
If that referendum does not pass, they will seek an- other referendum in a coun- tywide vote on March 5, 2019.
The district has more than 230 schools – the aver- age age being nearly 50 years old – and many schools are in need of a major invest- ment. In the next five years, 28 schools need new roofs and 63 schools need major A/C repairs or complete re- placements, in addition to painting, exterior lighting enhancements and new play- ground equipment.
The Revenue would also be used to improve security on campuses, renovate facil- ities, upgrade classroom technology, and equip work- shops and classrooms for ca- reer and technical workforce training.
Currently, the State of Florida ranks 41st in the na- tion, in education funding for K-12 schools. This past year, the state increased base funding by 47 cents per stu- dent. This is the main source of flexible funding for school districts, which is used to pay teachers and staff, create new programs and support classroom needs.
Despite the inadequate state funding, Hillsborough Schools has seen incredible
growth academically over the past three years – graduation rates reached a record high last year and the district was ranked as a top-rated large school district in America.
Hillsborough Schools is also a national leader in se- curity on campuses. But our students face a future in aging, crowded schools, and our community faces a $3 billion challenge due to the state’s budget for education funding.
Superintendent Jeff Eakins and School Board members have worked dili- gently over the past three years to reduce costs, find new efficiencies and get the district’s financial house in order.
In that timeframe, the district reduced 1,900 posi- tions. Hillsborough Schools has been responsibly paying $1 billion in mortgages for more than 60 schools built during the growth boom in the 1990s and early 2000s.
The district also faces $1 billion in deferred mainte- nance, as 40 schools need immediate A/C replacement plus other investments. An- other $1 billion is needed to handle the growth expected over the next 15 years. A minimum of 32 new schools are needed for the students expected to come to Hills- borough County. Building just one high school, which also serves as a hurricane shelter, costs more than $65 million.
For more information, visit our Hillsborough’s school needs website at hills- boroughschools.org/needs.
Gillum’s victory, say they are ready to cheer their can- didate on to another win 10 weeks from now.
For Amina Spahic, there was no other choice. Gillum was always the one, she said.
“He’s the only person who speaks for all of us,” she said. “He’s authentic. He doesn’t have to pander to anyone.”
The other leading Demo- cratic candidates – all mil- lionaires – just didn’t have the appeal that Gillum did, Spahic said.
Graham’s voting record during her time in Washington also was a turn off, she said.
“It really concerns me that she voted with Republi- cans 52 percent of the time,” she said. “That’s very con- cerning for me.”
Roy Benson, of Tampa, said Gillum’s platform earned his vote.
The mayor’s support of increasing the living wage and criminal justice reform are especially important, he said.
“Families can’t eat on $8.25 an hour,” he said. “We need a living wage.”
And like Spahic, Ben- son said he likes that Gillum comes across as genuine.
“He knows what it’s like to not have,” he said. “He can relate to everyday Floridians.”
Kimberly Williams,
of Tampa, concurred. “When I look at him...I
get a sense from him that he could be a friend, a brother,” she said. “He could sit down and talk about the issues, and he’s listening.”
PAGE 10-A FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY FRIDAY, AUGUST 31, 2018