‘Make Iowa look repressive and unwelcoming’

Representative Jon Dunwell’s recent article “Reducing taxes will reap significant returns for our educational funding of tomorrow” would be laughable if it wasn’t so alarming.

According to Dunwell, Iowa needs to attract more people and the way to do that is through tax cuts. Aside from the fact that the proposed flat tax is fundamentally unfair, for the obvious reason it favors the rich, there are many ways to attract new people. Abundant recreational facilities, clean water, diverse communities, affordable housing and first class schools to name just a few. Because Dunwell insists that “we value education,” let’s consider how our state demonstrates its appreciation.

The first blow happened five years ago when collective bargaining for teachers was banned. Underfunding for education has been a consistent problem for years, forcing teachers to spend their own money for supplies. Schools are woefully understaffed, a problem that’s been amplified by the pandemic. Four years go we ranked 5th in the nation for education, now we rank 18th. Currently, there are a number of controversial bills being proposed that would give anyone considering a teaching career in Iowa second thoughts.

• A new bill would require cameras in every classroom. Not only is this cost prohibitive (no additional state funding would be provided), who on earth would want their entire work day streamed live for anyone to view?

• Under the guise of “choice,” a bill that could funnel away almost 54 million dollars towards vouchers for private schools is once again being considered, redirecting tax dollars from public to private schools.

• Another proposed bill would allow criminal charges to be filed against educators over what’s deemed “inappropriate material” being shared with students. If a teacher knowingly provides a student with “obscene” material, it could be punishable by up to a year in jail, a hefty fine, and their teaching license revoked. It’s already illegal to have obscene material in school libraries.

These bills do nothing to elevate public education and instead make Iowa look repressive and unwelcoming. Rather than tax cuts for the wealthy, let’s use the $1B surplus to adequately fund schools. By threatening underpaid, overworked teachers with fines and imprisonment, how can anyone seriously believe “we value education?”

Lisa Cunningham

Newton