Rob Sand Hosts Education Roundtable in Council Bluffs and Rallies with Teachers in Waterloo and Cedar Falls

DES MOINES, IA – Last week, candidate for governor Rob Sand traveled to Council Bluffs for a roundtable on education with local school officials, current and former educators, parents, and public school advocates. The discussion focused on funding for public education, supporting rural schools, and oversight into the unaccountable private school voucher program.

During the conversation, Rob highlighted portions of his “Accountability for All” plan, pointing out that the voucher program is estimated to cost taxpayers $350 million this school year alone and that there’s no public oversight for those funds Rob has consistently called for reforms to the program, including requiring audits, limiting tuition increases, implementing income limits, and more.

Later in the week, Rob also traveled to Waterloo and Cedar Falls for a May Day rally with educators hosted by the Iowa State Education Association, which recently announced their support for Rob’s campaign for governor. Rob spoke to the rallygoers about the unaccountable voucher program and highlighted how insiders have failed Iowa’s public schools over the last decade of one-party control.

Read more about the roundtable and rallies below:

KMA Land: Sand hosts education roundtable in Council Bluffs

Local school officials and public education advocates met with Sand for an education roundtable at Tish’s Kitchen in Council Bluffs, covering a wide range of topics—ranging from funding for public education to recent reforms made to Area Education Agencies.
Currently serving as the State Auditor, Sand says Iowa is spending roughly $350 million on ESAs, which he argues have little oversight. In addition to imposing income limitations on ESAs, Sand says the state should also better regulate how private schools use state dollars and create a more “level playing field.”
“If you take public money, you take the public—no picking and choosing what student can come in the front door,” said Sand.
“It goes beyond salaries—teachers are not paid what they should be paid but they’re still doing the work despite that,” said Sand. “It is constant critiques and attacks and criticisms by legislators, by Department of Education officials, and by parents or community members who don’t have children in school. It is a teacher respect issue, and it has gone way too far.”
“I think a lot of different people, no matter their party affiliation, are frustrated with where we’re at with public education for Iowa,” said Sand. “We put it on our state quarter, when I was growing up in Decorah, we were always in the top three and now we’re kind of in the middle of the pack. You can hear it from teachers, you can hear it from parents, the path that we’re going down isn’t working and it’s time for change.”

The Daily Nonpareil: ESA oversight concerns a hot topic as Rob Sand hosts education roundtable in Council Bluffs

Sand sat down with six community members including parents, teachers, school board members and others with a passion for education. He told attendees that he wanted it to be a conversation where he does more listening than talking.
A big portion of the discussion revolved around the creation of the taxpayer-funded education savings accounts. ESAs are used to help cover costs for nonpublic education for Iowa children.
“I think a lot of different people, no matter their party affiliation, are frustrated with where we’re at with public education,” Sand said. “When I was growing up in Decorah, we were always in the top three and now we’re kind of in the middle of the pack and you can hear it from teachers. You can hear it from parents. The path that we’re going down isn’t working.”
“I think a big piece of fixing any problem is actually listening to people talking about what the problem is, because the better the understanding you have of it, the clearer you can act,” Sand said.
Sand said some of the things that need to be looked at are income limits and rules for private schools that hold them similarly accountable as public schools and regulate how money is spent.

Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier: Waterloo teachers, Rob Sand unite to defend public schools for May Day

The Waterloo Education Association, which represents the district’s nearly 900 teachers, held May Day “walk-in” rallies at eight different schools Friday. May Day, also known as International Workers’ Day, honors the history of workers striking for better pay and conditions. The Iowa State Education Association held 160 of these events across the state.
State Auditor and Democratic gubernatorial candidate Rob Sand spoke at the East High event. Area state legislators and local elected officials attended other events across the district. Sand said the start of education savings accounts, or ESAs, has accelerated public distrust of public schools.
“All the ways that you spend money in a public school, all the rules that you have to follow, don’t apply to private schools spending money. They can just literally do whatever they want,” he said, listing alcohol, fancy furniture or vacations as possibilities. “For a private school in Iowa, they don’t have to get an annual audit. And you know what else? They don’t have to take the public. They take the public money. They don’t have to take the public students. They can turn kids away.”
“In Iowa, we made a promise on our quarter: ‘Foundation in Education,’ Sand said about the coin’s slogan. “The people that have been running this state for the last 10 years have completely forgotten about it.”