The following petition will be sent to state legislators who are instrumental in creating the budget... Ronald Reagan declared in 1985, \"There is no more important test of a society than how it treats its children.... It is imperative for American society to protect its children and nurture them.\" ~ Presidential Proclamation, April 4, 1985 Taking away from education is the equivalent of chipping away the root of a strong community. We are disappointed that public education is the constant target facing budget cuts. The devastating aftermaths of the budget cuts in an already suffering community lacking in public education will only create division, ignorance, criminals- and in the end a weaker society and economy. Children and education should be the FIRST priority in our state and nationwide. Everything starts with education and family. Our public school system is already gravely underfunded. Please reconsider the long-term impact on cutting school budgets any further. Our future as a society is dependent on it. Our children are the future of this country. They deserve the best education we can possibly give them. Cutting the public school education budget is not the answer. The grim consequence of cutting school spending, is increase expenditures down the road for unemployment, prisons, and countless other public institutions. It is now more than ever imperative to keep our schools funded. It is incredulous that we, as a society, have allowed the profession of teaching to become undervalued as well as underpaid when compared to other professionals; as a group, we unfortunately have come to accept this fact. What is difficult to accept are the declining conditions and the impending cutbacks in programs year after year after year. Our schools are already suffering enough. We cannot afford to sacrifice any more educational services or hardworking teachers\' and ancillary staffs\' jobs. Please reconsider these proposed cuts and look elsewhere for the necessary funds to balance the state\'s budget. More resources, more teachers, more books, more equipment and facilities are needed in K-12 education, not fewer. Yet across the country, politicians are now attempting to impose budget cuts that will reduce resources and harm all schools. Funding for schools should be increased, not cut. Why jeopardize the education of the country\'s future We, the undersigned, implore you not to cut any monies out of our already strained educational budget.