Delawareans split on more education funding

(AP Photo/Steve Ruark)

(AP Photo/Steve Ruark)

More than half of Delaware’s residents think the state spends too little on education, according to a new study by the Vision Coalition.

Fifty-four percent of Delaware residents polled believe the state spent too little on public education. That’s one of the findings of the survey commissioned by the Vision Coalition of Delaware. The group, which was behind the highly touted Vision 2015 education reform plan, held the survey to give candidates running for office this year information about the state’s feelings on education.

“Delawareans care deeply about their public schools, and they want their elected officials to care about these issues, too,” said Ernest Dianastasis, chairman of the Vision Coalition leadership team. “This poll tells us that people want to see greater investments in time, energy, and resources to our schools, teachers and kids.”

The poll was performed over three days in May via landlines and cellphones. 400 registered Delaware voters were polled on a range of education issues.

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Other results showed residents don’t see much change in the quality of Delaware’s schools:

41 percent felt Delaware schools weren’t getting better or worse.
23 percent felt state schools were getting better or much better
32 percent thought schools were getting worse or much worse.

That opinion was also split along political lines, with 84 percent of Republicans saying schools were getting worse or not changing, and 34 percent of Democrats saying schools were getting better.

Now that 2015 has come and gone, the Vision Coalition is focused on its Student Success 2025 plan to improve Delaware schools. The plan includes investment in early learning and preparing students to perform well after high school.

The coalition will host its 9th annual conference on education on November 14 at the University of Delaware in Newark.

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