Wooden Nickels, Penny Loafers, Two Cents’ Worth, the Five & Dime, Pass the Buck, Pennies from Heaven!

The “good old days” gave us lots of opportunities with relatively little investment — not so today! Everywhere we turn, we must do more with less. Downsizing, corporate accounting scandals, and stock-market fluctuations make it difficult to maintain the status quo — much less grow and prosper. If we are experiencing these challenges in the business community, why then should it be any different in public education?

Florida — and Central Florida in particular — is challenged by a dramatically increasing and more mobile population, a growing low-wage-sector economy, and general lack of trust in the “systems” we know as social services, government and education.

There are bright spots! In a majority of the seven counties in the Central Florida Region, a portion of sales tax revenues are already being used to support public education. As a matter of fact, Seminole County Schools performed so well with the tax revenues designated for public schools that voters last September overwhelmingly approved an extension of the local option tax for another 10 years.

On September 10, 2002, Orange County voters will be asked to support a half cent increase in the sales tax to fund renovation, expansion and replacement of schools. While similar proposals have failed in the past, it is hoped that the time is right for passage, especially considering the fact that the move will include a half million dollar property tax reduction for Orange County citizens for the life of the new tax. It’s not just residents who will pay the tax — it is estimated that 48 percent of the tax revenue to support schools will come from the tourism and convention market, so it’s a win-win for everyone — especially the children!

Data collected by myregion.org since the first of the year reveal that the largest concentration of K-12 facilities in the region is clustered in Orange County — particularly around Orlando — with other large clusters in Volusia County (Daytona), Brevard County (Melbourne-Palm Bay-Titusville) and Polk County (Lakeland-Winter Haven). Construction and maintenance tasks are daunting, and funding questions must be resolved.

Change4Kids, a broad-based community committee, has been created to support the effort. Its Website, www.change4kids.com, provides information on everything from growth of student enrollment to a school construction fact sheet, from information on aging schools to funding options. It also provides details on the COVE Committee — Construction Oversight and Value Engineering — established in 1997 to bring expertise and accountability from the private sector to the superintendent and his staff.

To learn more or to volunteer to work for the successful passage of this referendum crucial to the futures of the children in Orange County, contact Change4Kids, 201 South Orange Avenue, Suite 1070, Orlando, Florida 32801, Telephone 407.835.0955, or electronically at www.change4kids.com.