I was deeply saddened to read about North Carolina’s “education” lottery (“Easley hedges on lottery funding,” Feb. 22). Having just moved here from Florida six months ago, mostly to escape the poor schools in Florida, I can tell you firsthand that education in North Carolina will not benefit from the lottery. Florida touts the billions of dollars given to education by their lottery over the last 12 years, but what is never mentioned is the concurrent decrease in state funding. My guess is that North Carolina will suffer the same fate. Schools in Florida are no better off than they were before the lottery. When my son was in kindergarten, we had to supply anything from toilet paper to paper towels for his class, and the school was always selling something to make a few extra dollars. In contrast, the demands for supplies at my son’s school in Cary are minimal, and his school here is amazingly helpful. He has had to work hard to catch up academically, but his school has helped with that, as well.
I hope that the people of North Carolina keep pressure on our state politicians to keep the lottery funds as additional funding, not replacement money. At a time when the United States is lagging behind other countries, especially in math and science, our education system does not need a “quick fix.” If education is truly important, then we as a society need to fund it like it is. If not, learn to speak Chinese.
Claudia Nunez
Cary
