As a retired social scientist, one of the principles learned from my career that has stuck to me the most, having studied this and that about humans and their culture, is simply stated: Any culture that neglects to care and prepare for the future of its young is already dead. When I think of the excellent education I received in New York, it was not I who paid the bill; it was those who were the adults, those working, those capable of making a way for me, those who had come before me and were thoughtful enough to leave a legacy, even though most were never to even know my name. Similarly, It is now my time to turn and around and give all I can for the next generation. Such is the responsibility of the adult to the child, the citizen to the community.
Now into my sixties, I look around my community and realize the value of the Southwest Open School to younger people in my community. I heard a lady at the Farmers Market this Saturday a lady whose son had attended that school exclaim: If that school had not been available for many young people, they would be in jail now. I dont know if that statement is accurate or not. What I do know from my studies is that as California is now discovering, as a result of their past unfortunate choices to ignore the old adage an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure it costs more to send a person to a state prison than to Harvard Graduate School. The California State Legislature is now having to cut back on university funding to run the overcrowded prison system. And yet, all but the most violent offenders are now having to be released. Thats a thought to roll around for a bit, Id say.
I want to see all of the youth of my community on their way to graduate school rather than Cañon City. The per capita cost of educating teens at SWOS is indeed low in comparison to other educational alternatives, let alone to incarceration.
I urge all of us as citizens to deeply consider the value of investment in the present as a desirable alternative to massive future debt, as we are so starkly facing now across our nation. One small act, bordering, seemingly somewhere between responsibility and devotion would seem to call us all to render a friendly nod to Proposition 3A for our youth, for our nation, for the future of us all.
James A. Mischke, of Cortez, is a professor emeritus of psychology, sociology and social work.
