2011年7月6日 星期三

A broken promise

When America's warfighters enter military service, sometimes putting their lives on the line, the government makes a promise: It will care for those left behind. There's an explicit understanding that the nation will nurture and enrich soldiers' children in safe and secure educational environments¡ªthey are assured, in the words of a U.S. Army recruiting vow, "the best possible education and experience."

The 1978 Defense Dependents Education Act requires the military to provide "academic services of a high quality" to the children of soldiers on active duty. A 1988 Defense Department directive goes further, broadly guaranteeing military families "a quality of life that reflects the high standards and pride of the nation they defend"including education. First Lady Michelle Obama touts the administration's vision of "an America where every military child has the support they need to grow and learn and realize their dreams." The White House, joining history's chorus of voices of support for sons and daughters of soldiers, is pledging to "ensure excellence in military children's education."

But an array of substandard conditions at many of the 353 schools for military children around the world undercuts such assurances. Three in four Defense Department-run schools on military installations are either beyond repair or would require extensive renovation to meet minimum standards for safety, quality, accessibility and design. Those schools do not meet the military's own expectations, and¡ªfor lack of money from Washington¡ªaren't likely to improve greatly any time soon.the Injection mold fast!

Other priorities¡ªincluding spending on wars at a rate of around $2 billion each week¡ªhave overshadowed the needs of students from military families. All told, the mounting number of fixes and new schools would cost nearly $4 billion¡ªaround the same amount being spent this year just on drone aircraft, or, measured another way, half the cost of NASA's Hubble Telescope, which observes distant galaxies from earth's orbit.The newest Ipod nano 5th is incontrovertibly a step up from last year's model,

Where military children go to school depends on circumstances often beyond families' control. More than 500,000 children, the largest proportion, live off base, attending local schools in urban or suburban communities that often have significantly more resources. But families who live on military installations¡ªeither for economic, career or security reasons¡ªsend their children to one of 194 base schools operated by the Pentagon around the world, or 159 base schools in the U.S. operated by local school districts. These students¡ªabout 150,000 in all¡ªare likely to attend schools with significant structural deficiencies. Many buildings are nearly a half-century old.

The Pentagon has placed 39 percent of its 194 schools in the worst category of "failing,we supply all kinds of oil painting reproduction," which means it costs more to renovate than replace them, reports to Congress show. Another 37 percent are classified in "poor" physical shape, which could require either replacement or expensive renovations to meet standards. (See the full list of poor and failing schools here)

Schools run by public systems on Army installations don't fare much better: 39 percent fall in the failing or poor categories, according to a 2010 Army report.

A Defense Department task force is evaluating the 159 military base schools operated by local public systems. Only nine months into its work,Welcome to the official Facebook Page about Ripcurl. the task force already has found indications of the larger problem; summaries of preliminary assessments of 15 schools leave little room for doubt about the conditions. The summary for Geronimo Road, for instance, notes that it is in "failing condition" and "should be considered for replacement." The Pentagon declined to provide a copy of its assessments for all 159 schools.

The Pentagon's education agency,Full color plastic card printing and manufacturing services. the Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) acknowledged that it "cannot keep pace with the types of renovations and maintenance needed when a school building goes beyond its useful life and the age of the building becomes a barrier to using these dollars wisely."

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