As our economic state continues to set precedence regarding US Government bailouts, we unashamedly ignore the source of many of our financial woes (and perhaps the long-term solution to many of them)– the current state of public education.
There seems to be striking similarities between the domestic automakers and our public schools. Just as legacy costs, outdated methods, and the sheer political power of the UAW have nearly crippled our domestic auto industry, our antiquated model of schooling continues to hemorrhage taxpayer dollars for endless diminishing returns.
However, the future effects are far more frightening when the completed product is an uneducated citizenry as opposed to a gas guzzling SUV. Just as our country has trended toward imported vehicles, we are increasingly importing talent to run our business and intellectuals to perform our research.
Why not apply the same bailout to public education that we are to our auto industry?
The timing is impeccable. While I agree that President-Elect Obama’s Keynesian stimulus plans of implementing massive infrastructure projects seem to be an appropriate, do we expect the 300,000+ recently unemployed financial services workers to start building bridges and pouring asphalt? Would we even have time to train them?
Consider that we now have ready-made army of professionals with academic and real-world backgrounds based in business, finance, and mathematics.
For less than it will cost to prop up our auto industry, could we unleash this army into our classrooms and take the first step toward securing the financial futures of our country and her next generation of leaders?
…..Bankers-to-Teachers Project?
