"What is feared in many cases is that, you
know, although school districts are hanging
on some will
lose their grip and fall off the ledge."
"My biggest fear is that we're going to
be too little, too late.
We're gonna be so out competed in the
global economy and that's what the
problem really is.
We look at, we've always been a
front-runner in New York State
if we are starting to take a big step
back from education and we're starting
to like balance the state budget
on the back of education. We were a 
front-runner now are we?"
"It's like we're going through the ringer and
it's like oh my gosh it's budget time
let's let's see what happens this year.
It's so crazy when we almost lose it, because I
don't know
what I would do here at the high school
without it."
Just a few short years ago in the state
of New York our public schools were
funded
at the levels to which state leaders had
promised. Then in 2010
things changed. In 2010 then governor
Patterson introduced
the gap elimination adjustment also
known as the GEA
as a way to help close New York's then
$10 billion dollar
budget deficit. Under the legislation a
portion of the funding shortfall at the
state level
was divided among all school districts
throughout the state
and reflected as a reduction in school
districts state
aid. During the past four years school
districts throughout the state have been
crippled by this continuous loss of aid.
Quality educational programs have been
systematically dismantled,
opportunities for students, your children,
your community members have been lost
and despite talk
of a projected budget surplus of two
billion dollars in 2016
there is no end to the GEA in sight.
"Schools are they're a place where kids grow
up.
Much of the time it happens on athletic
fields, at music practices, at
drama productions. The culture of the school
is key." "Our legacy is
that our children and our future
generation are prepared
to lead him to improve
the lives of their children and beyond
and I think
we've lost that." "When administrations cut
down on
these courses that they might consider
extraneous
or unnecessary what they do is they
don't accomplish much because
the students that would be succeeding or excelling
they get pushed out and the students who
who feel that they're
not succeeding necessarily, they
began to struggle because courses aren't
offered at their level either."
"I fear that for my daughters who are at
the elementary level
that if these cuts continue what are they
going to have to choose between?
Or will there be any choices at all?" "This
year
I was unable to take AP Biology
which is what really
made me want to become a physical
therapist and I'm really want to take
like
eight different AP courses, but its not
available to me at this time.
Because of this I'm actually at a slight
disadvantage to other incoming students
going to college.
With all these opportunities that I am not
able to achieve any more, what's gonna
happen to that future generations that
are coming up?" "I feel as if just as my
academics are important the things I do
outside of school are just as important: mock trial,
marching band, select choir, my quartet. All
of these things are going to incorporate
in what I want to put
in my life for the future and will make
me someone to stand out." 
"I don't really consider my music an
activity. It's not an activity it's a
part of me."
"I play baseball, I play basketball, I'm
in the National Honor Society
and I take two AP classes and a SUNY
class. Playing sports has
taught me a lot about responsibility and
accountability."
"I believe that through sport, it's almost
like a collaboration
of everybody coming together and sharing
their values and trusting one another
and
all the things we can use and be
successful in the real world."
"Taught me about
perseverance and how to
push yourself, not only physically, but mentally. 
It made me very outgoing person
I'm proud that I'll most likely be
graduating at the top of my class,
but I'm even more proud that the
athletics has afforded me the opportunity
to be
part of something bigger than just myself."
"During middle school when they
they first introduced a different
languages, Spanish, French and German,
there was a pamphlet saying at that time
that German was
the second most spoken language on the
Internet." "My trip to Germany
in the 10th grade was probably the
single most
amazing experience of my high school
career perhaps of my entire life so far."
(Speaking German)
"I honestly think that if I hadn't
had the opportunity to take all the
AP science courses and science
research that was available to me, I probably
have
I wouldn't realize that I was in love
science, I wouldn't realize that I wanted to
do research and I'd be a lot less sure of what
I wanted to do when I got to college."
"I've had the opportunity to take like every
AP class available. I've gotten
to really pinpoint exactly what I enjoy
and thats
of course math and science and specifically
electrical engineering
and that's exactly what I want to do.
Without these classes I would truly
be lost."
In the last four state budgets the forty
seven districts in
our area representing more than 112,000
students
over seven counties have lost more than
387 million dollars that was promised to
them
due to the gap elimination adjustment.
Stand up and speak out,
write letters, make phone calls and meet
face to face
with our legislators and let them know
that our kids can't wait
another year.
