May 24, 2024
Dear esteemed MUSD Board Member Anu Nakka, Esteemed City Council Member Evelyn Chua, and Esteemed PTA 6th District President Dawn Brewer-Ying, we, the MUSDFP (MUSD Funding Project), are deeply concerned about the insufficient funding for the Milpitas Unified School District (MUSD).
We urge MUSD Board Member Anu Nakka, City Council Member Evelyn Chua, and PTA 6th District President Dawn Brewer-Ying to increase the funding allocated to MUSD to ensure quality education and maintenance.
We feel this would benefit us by:
Improving the quality of educational resources and equipment, such as textbooks, technology, infrastructure, and learning materials, which are essential for our academic growth, success, and safety. Improving school buildings and infrastructure, which currently poses a safety hazard. For example, in our science class, we had a faulty TV. For several science classes, we wasted precious science time going to the learning lab and then learning without all the regular multimedia features that helped us understand the content. Another example in which we require funding is in our PE equipment. Our PE equipment often gets lost or broken, leading to less physical activity, which is terrible for our health and fitness.
Funding would also help us hire more staff that still need to be included. For example, in our school, we don’t have a librarian; we have a lot of books but no one to let people check out or view them. By fixing this, we can improve students’ vocabulary and reading skills. Another example would be the absence of a PE teacher for intermediate grades. The absence means the class teacher takes valuable prep time for another educational activity to conduct PE.
We, the undersigned, call on the esteemed MUSD Board Member Anu Nakka, Esteemed City Council Member Evelyn Chua, and Esteemed PTA 6th District President Dawn Brewer-Ying to make a difference by:
1. Renew parcel tax Measure E to raise additional funds for MUSD schools; this would provide a dedicated revenue stream controlled locally that the state can’t take.
2. Advocate for increased state education funding from California’s budget, Santa Clara County’s budget, and so on.
3. Apply for more federal Title funds directed at schools for specific causes. Marshall Pomeroy can at least apply for Title III funds because some kids only speak Spanish in my class. Some other schools in MUSD have already applied for Title I funding, and all MUSD schools can apply for the funds. We can apply for Title IIA funds to get more staff members to address our current staffing shortage. We can have more youth development activities, such as the STEAM fair, to get Title IV funds to enhance our extracurricular offerings.
4. We request that the MUSD PTA hold more fundraisers, such as school runs and pledge drives.
Ultimately, a multi-angle approach using local, state, and federal funding sources while controlling costs could provide MUSD with the additional resources needed to invest in areas proven to enhance student success, such as teacher compensation and up-to-date facilities and equipment. These investments would improve the quality of education in the short term and contribute to our community’s long-term success and prosperity.
By investing in our education, you are investing in the future of our community and the lives of Marshall Pomeroy Elementary School students. We respectfully request your support in ensuring that we receive the best possible education, which will shape our future and contribute to the betterment of our society.
We sincerely appreciate your consideration and potential support in this matter. Thank you for your time and commitment to our community.
Sincerely,
Dhiaan Dave, on behalf of Shaurya Maviya, Zion Kim, and the rest of the Marshall Pomeroy Elementary School students.