Education is a necessity, regardless of what you do. To deny someone this is a crime in and of itself. Yet, a large part about education is the environment itself. To say the least, Perry-Lecompton High School is a relic from the 1960s. You’d almost expect to see students wearing granny dresses and spouting flower power. The Lecompton Elementary School gym is shrinking as though it is entering a final stage of life. The middle school has seen much better decades.

As a senior, I’m a bit distraught that we are just now getting a bond proposal to pass. What I mean is I won’t be there to appreciate it when it’s built. There have been two other bond proposals put forth to the voters since I have been a student. Neither passed. The last one fell through, though, due to the fear of new taxes and no clear buyer for the middle school building. That proposal, like the first, would have clearly benefited my education.

This bond proposal will build a new middle school onto the existing high school, a new competition sized gym for the high school, a renovated kitchen area for the high school, extra parking spaces and a new gym for the elementary school, with two extra classrooms as well. The cost of the improvements is roughly $10 million paid over a period of about 20 years.

The vast difference between this proposal and the last one is that we actually have a few buyers interested in the middle school. It’s true taxes will go up slightly, but the cost of education is priceless. For example, in 1945 when the GI Bill was passed, it enabled veterans to go to college for free or at a greatly reduced price. It paid for 15 million veterans’ educations, and one could argue that the educations allowed them to reach a higher pay bracket. Subsequently they paid higher taxes. So ironically, they paid for their own education.

It’s really embarrassing when kids from other schools come to compete. Our antiquated school doesn’t measure up to what they have come to expect of a school in the 21st century. I can only show amazement when I hear that other school districts have built brand new schools because they weren’t big enough when our school district has to struggle with basic maintenance needs. I, as well as other members of the senior class of Perry-Lecompton High School, approve this message: Vote FOR the bond proposal.