The Olympia, Washington School District has a $13.9 million budget deficit. A big number for a smallish community.
The talk has turned to school closures. Parents, students, and other community members are upset and pushing back.
Here are two sample public statements, the first mindlessly conspiratorial; the second, thoughtful and cogent.
“The superintendent and the board members who voted yes to start the 90-day process do not care about the concerns our community has voiced. It is clear that there is a biased agenda happening behind closed doors since the only option they are willing to present is school closures.”
“Our students are not a classroom, they are not data points, they are not funding dollars—they are children. And behind each one of our children, there is a family, there is a story, and there are emotions.”
Lots of emotions.
Most of the protesters say they want to work with the district to find alternatives to closures. That spirit is nice, but I don’t see any counterproposals that result in a sustainable, balanced budget.
I suspect there’s only one alternative to increasing efficiencies through school closures. Increasing property taxes.
And no one is talking about that.
Pressing Pause 
What’s frustrating about this is it seems like every few years there’s a budget issue with the OSD. The Supe and the Board could serve the community by developing a sustainable budget for the district. There has to be a better way to run the railroad.