If you live in Bastrop County you know that it has a small town feel even thought it has grown so much that a new high school was just built to accommodate for the number of students. Austin Community College has proposed to build two new campuses in Bastrop County and expand the district so that all of Bastrop County will pay in district tuition. Bastrop already has a center at Bastrop High School that many high school students and other people of the community take classes at. I personally know that at Bastrop High School you can take dual credit classes and Austin Community College plays a big role in the future of many students.
The cost of a four year university compared to going to a community college and then transferring to a four year university is less expensive. If the proposal passes then all residents of the county will be able to pay the in district tuition effective immediately. If Bastrop joins the district residents will pay the $0.0951 per $100 valuation property tax starting in 2012. Construction of the two new campuses will start in 2011.
There are people in Bastrop that do not want this proposal to pass, but what do they have against higher education? Most of all the people who vote no or are advertising to vote no do not want to join the district because they feel as though the small town feel will go away. Bastrop County has grown over the years and is not a small town as it once was. With the growth, some Bastropians don’t want the change of a big city. Another reason people want to vote no is because they think the tax is too high when in reality the tax for this college district is lower than most other places in Texas.
Things in life that are free are not actually free. We are able to go to public school for free because someone is paying taxes for that school to be free. Libraries, schools, and parks are called common goods. Common goods are things that residents pays for threw taxes on various items so that the community can use them for free. Paying an additional property tax will lower tuition rates for all of Bastrop County and make college one step closer to obtaining a college degree.
This is in regards to Amelia Henneke’s blog entry titled “Expand the District or Keep Students Paying Higher Tuition Cost” . Amelia presents a very interesting issue that has been issue of discussion as the population of Texas, and many other states for that matter, continue to grow. As the population continues to grow, young men and women throughout the region will need to expand their knowledge, attain more skills, or prepare for a higher education to improve their lives and the lives of their families or future families. Amelia brings specifically mentions Bastrop, and presents very credible data to support her argument. Personally, I agree with her in that nothing is free. The idea of a “free” education is just that, an idea. Residents pay their dues through property, sales, and other taxes. The people of Bastrop do not want to lose their “small town feel”, and actually have since turned down the annexation into Austin Community’s district as per this article in the Bastrop Advertiser. In my opinion, this would have been in the best interest of Bastrop to annex into the Austin Community College district. The lower tuition would allow for more people to have access to the benefit of a higher education. The idea of a large population sacrificing a relatively small amount of money for a more accessible higher education for their young is the nuts and bolts of what a collective good is. This is one of the many ideas that have made this country what it is today. Many people have sacrificed time, money, and even their lives for us to enjoy these liberties and benefits. Let us not forget that we must all play our part and give a little back to our communities, it is all for the greater good.
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