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Other failures are systemic. Hungry children can’t learn. Children without pre‑K are less likely to be kindergarten‑ready. Kids whose families can’t afford summer or after‑school enrichment lose ground and face greater risks. None of this is new — but it is unacceptable. Most of us believe no child is more deserving than another. Yet we tell ourselves there isn’t enough money, that taxes are already too high, that MCPS already consumes half the county budget. When the system fails your child, it stops feeling like a public good. Scarcity thinking takes over, and we start pitting children’s needs against those of older adults, people with disabilities, working families, or even other children. It’s not that we don’t care. It’s that we don’t see a way out. So we settle for goals like 75% kindergarten readiness or 60% reading proficiency and call that “good enough.” But it isn’t. Our definition of “good enough” must rise to meet the needs of all children. To get there, we need universal pre‑K and school nutrition for every family that wants it, and enough teachers and staff to reduce class sizes so every child is known and supported. And here’s the truth: we can afford this without raising county income or property taxes. It only feels impossible because a small number of people hold extraordinary wealth, and because Maryland leaves billions in owed taxes uncollected. The comptroller estimates $3 billion in state taxes go uncollected each year, and roughly one‑third of the largest corporations pay no state income tax at all. If we want schools that meet the needs of all children, more equitably, we must fully fund tax enforcement, adopt water’s‑edge combined reporting (as 28 states already do), allow counties to levy sales and luxury taxes, and increase pension fund investment in Maryland’s social infrastructure, including schools. These are choices the Maryland General Assembly controls — and these are the choices I will make to better District 18 and to ensure MCPS truly serves all of our children.
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