I chose to teach in Kansas for the schools. Don’t make me regret that. | Commentary

As a recent college graduate looking for a teaching position in 2007, I had opportunities in my home state of Nebraska as well as on the East Coast.

I chose Kansas.

Even though I had no roots here, no family – I chose Kansas because of its public school system.

In high school, I competed against multiple Kansas school districts in marching band. Even then, I knew that any public school district with a robust music program would also have a well-rounded educational experience for their students. When the arts are fully built-out because they are well funded, you can bet the investment in academics is similarly strong.

After moving to Kansas for my first teaching job, I learned I was right. In 2007, I found that Kansas had invested in and supported their public schools wholeheartedly.

As a new teacher, I felt valued, encouraged and supported.

And then came the years when Derek Schmidt, the current Republican candidate for governor; and later, Gov. Sam Brownback, slashed funding for public schools.

Teacher salaries were frozen, if they were lucky, and many teachers were simply let go. Schools had so little funding some were forced to go to four-day weeks.

Positions weren’t filled and others simply absorbed those responsibilities without any additional compensation.

We often talk about the dollars and cents of it all, but what we should consider is the emotional stress placed on teachers at the hands of financial strain and public opinion.

The conversation shifted during this period. Teachers were no longer supported and encouraged. I felt less valued. We all did.

Many in recent years have left the classroom. Myself included.

Sam Brownback and his chief defender, Derek Schmidt, nearly destroyed our public school system. We cannot give Schmidt the chance to finish what he started.

I say that now as the parent of one future and two current Kansas public school students.

Gov. Laura Kelly has worked tirelessly to rebuild our schools. Under her leadership, Kansas public schools have been fully funded four years in a row. Gov. Kelly passed a tax credit to help teachers who purchase classroom supplies out of their own pockets. She’s provided scholarships to help aspiring teachers attend college.

Kelly hears our public school teachers, she listens to them, and she helps.

That kind of support is invaluable to current teachers but especially to those just entering the field. The first few years in a classroom are extremely challenging. To know your governor is behind you, that she supports you, that she values you is heartening and vital to the retention of new and the recruitment of future educators.

Kansas has made incredible progress under Kelly, but the recovery from the financial and emotional damage of the Schmidt-Brownback era is ongoing. Special education, for instance, still requires funding to ease the pressure on individual districts. There is no doubt in my mind that Schmidt would bring public schools back to the days of chronic underfunding as he continues to antagonize our public school teachers to this day.

We must keep Kelly in the governor’s office so she can continue her work in rebuilding our public schools. But we also need to make sure her pro-education proposals have support in the Legislature by electing representatives who share her dedication. Kelly’s steadfast commitment to public education shows those considering a teaching career that they will be supported and valued. That is how you get teachers in the classroom and how you keep them there.

I moved to Kansas at 23 because of our public schools. I stayed in Kansas when I had children of my own because of our public schools, especially once we learned our oldest son would need the support of special education.

We must re-elect Kelly to ensure we can continue rebuilding our public school system and work to solve our teacher shortage. Our collective future depends on it.