Voters in southeast Harris County should not feel left out of the elections tomorrow. The San Jacinto College System is asking their voters to approve $295 million in bonds.
There is a huge difference in direction between the Lone Star College and San Jacinto College bond proposals.
Recall what Lone Star College Montgomery campus President Tom Butler said about growth and expansion at his campus:
By hundreds of percents, the fastest growing programs at the Montgomery campus are music and drama, Butler said.
The bond will help fund a 20,000-square-foot arts instructional building for the popular classes, including band, orchestra and choral practice rooms.
Contrast this with San Jacinto College’s goal for their bonds:
The goal, Chancellor Bill Lindemann said, is to serve the region’s appetite for expertise in science, math, engineering and technology.
“Community colleges are driven by community needs,” he said. “A lot of the jobs in the communities we serve have these relatively high-tech jobs.”
Hmm. Band, orchestra and choir rooms or math, engineering and technology. Guess which group I think is on the right track?
You can find out more information about the bonds here. For poll locations, click here.
BigJolly says, Vote Yes on the future for the San Jacinto College System!
18 Responses to “San Jacinto College System Bond Election”
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May 9th, 2008 at 12:56 pm
Hey band is important! Students involved in music do a lot better than athletes.
- HS and college saxophonist and recovering drummer
May 9th, 2008 at 1:02 pm
Liberal.
May 9th, 2008 at 1:31 pm
The Woodlands HS had a frigging 18 wheeler to haul their band equipment to events. That is just damned ridiculous.
May 9th, 2008 at 1:32 pm
We have too many engineers as it is. They’re always impeding progress anyway. We need more musicians, particularly ignorant ones, to tell us how and what to think.
May 9th, 2008 at 1:44 pm
#4 Very true texpat.
That reminds me of a joke I heard while an engineering student:
What do you say to a recent grad with a Master’s in Literature?
I’ll take a grande mocha frappuccino…
May 9th, 2008 at 2:38 pm
For the record, I say that we should not undervalue the benefit to society in general, for having the benefit of a well-funded program of fine arts endeavors.
That said, I live in the Lone Star College area and will be voting against the bond election, almost entirely because I am sick and tired of school districts and similar entities scheduling elections on days other than “normal” elections (be it Primary or General), and then shuffling the polling places so that they’re difficult to locate. If the bond proposal is important, schedule it on a day when the general voting populace will be out to vote, and spend the money to promote it to the general public. I have a severe problem with educrats, teachers, and students making the decision to pay for something which comes to rest on the shoulders of the general public who barely ever heard that there was a bond proposal to consider.
my, rather irritated, 2ยข
– Ken
May 9th, 2008 at 2:47 pm
#5 & #6
I agree with both of you. Ha!
May 9th, 2008 at 3:47 pm
I’m all for the arts. Privately funded and certainly not at a community college.
May 9th, 2008 at 3:47 pm
To All:
I started my path toward a degree in Engineering in the (groan) mid-seventies at San Jacinto College. Ms Simple and I were on a tight budget between her job and my VA benefits. I would have never got the start without San Jacinto.
I was lucky enough to have gotten to chance to sit down and talk with Dr Spenser (the father of SanJac)during those years.
It was his philosophy that the purpose of San Jacinto was to provide the kids of East-Side working class parents a less expensive alternative to a four year university. Most of the folks I went to school with during that time were just like me…..driven to complete an education to put food on the table. The typical student at San Jac was working part-time if not full time.
I am proud to say that San Jacinto has stuck to this simple mission and to any who would poo-poo the standards at SanJac….well I was much better prepared for higher level courses in Mathematics at the UoH than some of the students that took their Calculas series at the UofH.
But then again…we eastsiders have always known we were sweathogs.
Simple
May 9th, 2008 at 4:54 pm
As someone who has a degree in mathematics, has a full-time job as a software engineer, and who is a performing musician and music-lover in general, I submit that both the arts and science are important. For that matter, so are sports, business, etc. There needs to be a balance in education, and different students need different mixes in order to benefit themselves and society. I find the attitude that science and technology = “good”, and arts = “bad”, offensive - as if there hasn’t been waste on the science side of things (studies to figure out why kids fall off of tricycles come to mind).
I am not speaking out for or against the two colleges bond elections - I just didn’t like the generalization.
May 9th, 2008 at 7:16 pm
GriffithLea,
I don’t think I took a tone of Science and Technology = Good and Arts = Bad, but on the Eastside getting a job is much more important.
A broad based education is essential to the liberally educated mind, which has nothing to do at all with being liberal or conservative.
There is a reason that starving artist is nearly a cliche.
I see that you have a day job!
Simple
May 9th, 2008 at 10:47 pm
Sounds like you are on to something, BigJolly….. In the “Market place” of Education, Community Colleges CAN be an important aspect. I hope that the States will, one day, re-evaluate the money going to State Universities in regard to ‘bang for the buck’, and State Budget constraints. In some cases, it could be advantageous to have many or most of the College students go to Community Colleges first….. I can hear the Alumni moaning from here.
May 9th, 2008 at 11:24 pm
Not to toot my own horn, but I think band is important, but not important enough for a freakin bond election. I did enjoy college band very much. Make the alumni pay for it… that’s how Mississippi State got their funding.
May 10th, 2008 at 10:48 am
I, for one, cannot understand Fred Blanton, Lonestar Times and KSEV’s complete contempt and disdain for the NHMCCD (now Lonestar) college system. Two years ago Chris Begala and Fred Blanton managed to derail the district’s previous bond attempt with a “frivolous” complaint to the Dept of Justice. Yes, “frivolous” was the finding. It cost the district thousands and thousands of dollars.
What else is in the Lonestar bond? A health science wing. Much needed classroom space. Plumbing and electrical upgrades to keep up with the increase enrollments.
On top of this the District believes that there will be no need for an tax increase. Not everyone can pay to go to big state, or private colleges. I had to pay for my own education.
I’m voting YES!
Signed a Proud North Harris College graduate.
May 10th, 2008 at 12:56 pm
#14. Not to confuse you, but Blanton had nothing to do with the DOJ complaint. You can put that at the feet of LULAC. Just because you’re a NHC graduate, I suppose you’ll swallow anything the district dishes out. That’s just sad. I wish you could see the thousands and thousands of dollars of waste discovered through open record requests.
Tsk, tsk.
May 10th, 2008 at 2:26 pm
Election results: All issues
http://www.chron.com/apps/ElectionPub/local.mpl?action=results&nextview=preelection&conav=1
May 10th, 2008 at 9:25 pm
So, does Austin and College Station also pay off bonds for UT and A&M’s debt? Do they pay property tax for the schools? Why should we liable for LSC’s and SJC’s operations and debts?
May 11th, 2008 at 10:35 am
San Jac’s bond passed
LoneStarCollege bond passed easily
And Mr. Blanton attempt to have a place on the board failed, again.
Really, how can you respect a man with a website of www.collegewatch.net and knowing he owns (sorry, his 90 year old mother owns) significant property adjacent to the campus ;^0
Cajun, funding for state colleges is different. If UT, UH, A&M ect want a building they can simply ask the State for the money. Community Colleges are mostly funded locally.