I ask fellow Lewiston community members to consider voting “yes” on the school budget Tuesday, July 9.
If they have been voting no on the budget, I understand the impulse to cut costs — I do it all the time as a mom navigating the impossible cost of living. The cheapest pound of butter at Shaw’s is nearly $5. Everything is too expensive.
However, if we as a community vote “no” on the school budget, taxpayers may save, but someone else will pay: our students.
Lewiston students — children, too young to vote, will feel the effects of our decision. Class sizes will increase as staff positions are cut, basic educational supplies will decline, and programs where children thrive will lose funding. As a teacher at Lewiston High School, I see firsthand how another slash in the budget will rob our students of the education they deserve.
I, too, disagree with the current system — property tax should not dictate how we fund our public schools. If people want to change how we fund our public schools, I urge them to contact our legislators. A vote against the budget is not an effective protest against an unfair system; it’s a direct withdrawal from the future of Lewiston.
Let’s come together for the students and vote “yes” on the budget.
Aimee Ranger, Lewiston
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