Senator Joe Simitian converses with an attendee of his “Education Update” after the official meeting had ended.

– Suzanna Ackroyd

California State Senator Joe Simitian held his annual “Education Update” this morning at the Palo Alto Unified School District Office on Churchill Avenue, where he talked to constituents about public education funding, and in particular, budget issues. 

“Every year I do an education update,” Simitian said. “Most of the conversation today was about budget issues — that’s front and center … [and] what people are understandably concerned about. There is not an awful lot in the way of new program opportunities due to the budget situation.”

According to Simitian, this year’s meeting was the most attended to date.

“Every year I ask my staff [if they] think people are still interested, and every year my staff thinks people will want to attend,” Simitian said. “This is the largest turnout we’ve ever had.”

Simitian said that the meeting is both a chance for him to update his constituents on events in Sacramento and for him to be updated on what is happening in his district directly by its members.

“[It] is an opportunity to tell people what is happening in Sacramento,” Simitian said. “But part of my job is also to understand what is happening in local schools and local districts.”

Part of Simitian’s message was the importance of education and the importance of government funding for it; this included higher education. 

“We need to reaffirm the notion that public education is a benefit not only for the students we educate, [but also] for the larger community,” Simitian said. “The costs of not educating students are costs borne by the entire society, and the benefits of education are benefits that accrue to the entire society. Particularly in the world of higher education, we’ve seemed to have forgotten about that in California. On one level it’s about equal opportunity; on another level … We can’t expect to be competitive on a national and global basis.”

When asked about the future of University of California campus tuition and the recent tuition hikes, Simitian said much will depend on a five-year education tax proposal on this November’s ballot. 

“I think a lot of it will depend on whether the tax proposal on the November ballot is successful or not,” Simitian said. “The proposal will have a sale tax increase and surge charge on upper income earners for a five-year period, [which is] temporary, but long enough for some relief. If it doesn’t pass, I think that students should expect that what is an already bad situation [will get worse].

Simitian said he “sympathizes” with college students who face student debt, and that “I am, myself, a product of the U.C. system.” 

“I got both my law degree and city planning degree at U.C. Berkeley,” Simitian continued.  “In those days it was truly free … I have talked to young adults who have [hundreds of thousands of dollars] of debt and it is just mind boggling. I don’t know how they go out and face the world.”

When asked what issues he thought high school students and young voters should pay attention to, his answer was simple: 

“I would encourage every voter, but particular young voters, to look past the controversial issue of the day and to look at the issues that affect their long term futures,” Simitian said. “A 21-year-old voter is going to be living with the consequences of these decisions for 50, 60, 70 years.”

Simitian related this to the lack of funding for education.

“On these education issues that is part of the challenge,” Simitian said. “People have [been] making decisions to change the short term challenge, without realizing the long term consequences. The long term viability of the system has been damaged irreparably.”

Senior Scott Kleckner, who has interned at Joe Simitian’s office since early 2011, was working at the event and said it “went well.”

“The questions were framed politely, the responses thorough; overall, [it was] informative and civil,” Kleckner said.

A slideshow of the event can be found here.