Your morning jolt: Democrats condemn end of limits on class size, Republicans split
The state Board of Education on Monday voted to gut its limits on class sizes over the next year in response to a deepening school budget crisis that has already forced thousands of teacher layoffs and shorter school years across the state.
The move prompted criticism among a majority of candidates for governor, especially Democrats in hot competition for the public school constituency.
But Republicans were decidedly split in their reactions — Karen Handel and John Oxendine called it was a bad idea, Nathan Deal described himself as “disappointed,” Jeff Chapman declared it “the best thing,” and Eric Johnson said “vouchers.”
We asked the major candidates to send us a paragraph or so of commentary on the topic. In alphabetical order:
DEMOCRATS
Attorney General Thurbert Baker:
“For a decade, our leaders have been on a spending spree with a credit card. Now the bill has come due, but instead of cutting government waste to pay for their spending, the politicians are cutting education, just like they always do. Education is the last