Reform should add education

In 1996, President Clinton passed sweeping changes to the U.S. welfare system. Critics who were outraged by the changes have fallen silent as about 30 percent of the welfare recipients have moved from welfare rolls to a payroll. Now that the welfare system is up for reform, George W. Bush is adding a personal touch -- one that includes a push from welfare to work that shoves people right past the schoolhouse door. \nThe welfare system, excluding education restrictions, is getting tougher. Bush is telling states to get 70 percent into the workplace by 2007. \n Under the '96 plan, welfare recipients could count up to a year of vocational training as 'work' before losing their eligibility for state welfare dollars. Bush is cutting that window to allow three months of training, and boosting the hours per week that recipients must work from 30 to 40 hours per week, further limiting opportunities for education. \nWhile the emphasis of the 1996 reform was overwhelmingly on work rather than education, Bush's proposals obliterate the opportunity to obtain an education. As the government seeks to help people up from the lower rungs of the socio-economic ladder, it has a responsibility to make the transition flexible enough for them to ascend to a higher level than McDonald's crew leader. There is nothing inherently wrong with service jobs, but there is something wrong with the government putting an artificially low glass ceiling in place. \nThe limits on education do nothing to bridge the widening gap between rich and poor in America. It stands to create a wider chasm as people receiving state funds are vaulted into work without a chance to make long-term investments in their ability to make a living. \nSenator Evan Bayh, D-Ind., and Tom Carper, D-Del., are proposing an amendment to Bush's bill that would offer funds to recipients who seek to attend community colleges. The amendment would increase opportunites for those with the will to go back to school. It strengthens the safety net but does not do enough.\nConcerned citizens should voice their concerns while the law is still in limbo. Educational opportunities should be a central element of the welfare reforms. The money the states save in welfare payments can go toward training the former recipients. This means long-term benefits for people and the places they live. No one should be entangled in the safety net when the resources for education exist.\nStaff vote: 7 - 3 - 0\nyes - no - abstain