Education triumphed in Tuesday’s state election with the passage of propositions 55, 57, and 58.

Voters approved the tools to empower the state to meet three key challenges - preserving equal access to quality education, managing the state’s debt, and balancing the annual state budget. The bond measures will help protect California’s economy and its educational infrastructure. By passing them, California voters demonstrated their support for public education and their willingness to continue investing in students.

Proposition 55 will provide $10 billion for K-12 schools, $920 million for community colleges, $690 million for the University of California, and $690 million for California State University. A portion of those funds will make possible vital basic projects at educational facilities in this region over the next few years. While CSU Stanislaus will still be expected to make deep cuts, perhaps they will not be as severe as they would have been without the passage of these measures.

Proposition 57 and 58 will help bring stability to the budget process and confidence in the state’s economy by providing more time to reduce the budget shortfall and restructure the debt. Pending cuts to the 2004-05 state budget still pose serious challenges to higher education finances. However, without the Proposition 57 bond, resulting budget cuts would have jeopardized the most basic educational services.

All three propositions will help remedy the state’s current budget crisis and provide critical future funding for education to play a vital role in building a stronger economy for California’s future.

We in education are appreciative of the confidence the voters have expressed and will be fully accountable for these funds that are an investment in the state’s future prosperity. Californians have demonstrated that investing in education is really an investment in the continued strength and bright future of this state.

Marvalene Hughes

President, CSU Stanislaus