Letter: Prop. 320 Isn’t for students

As a high school junior in Arizona's public schools witnessing firsthand the never-ending slew of complaints, I know the biggest problem isn’t a lack of curriculum, resources, or field trips; it’s the support systems students’ success depends on. Prop. 320 would require major districts to spend 60% of their budgets on “direct instruction.” Sure, that sounds great: more money towards students. In reality, that requires SUSD, for example, to shift $14.9 million from real pressure points: counselors, teacher training, and security. Arizona's counselor-to-student ratios are already stretched thin. How can public education compete with private schools with the most intensive counselor support in the US? And the thought of school security becoming expendable is terrifying. Students should never have to trade safety and security for a spreadsheet percentage. If Prop. 320 makes Arizona education look better on paper while making schools worse for the students inside them, it has failed its purpose. Arizona students deserve better; we cannot afford to get this wrong.