The graduating class of 2017 was in kindergarten in 2004 – the last time voters approved a bond measure and mill levy override in cash-strapped District 51.

An entire generation of students later, many of the district’s older buildings have deteriorated to the point of obsolescence amid ongoing budgetary challenges and the district lacks the resources to fully optimize its conversion to performance-based learning.

When John Williams, president of the school board, declared “it’s just time” to ask voters for more money Tuesday, he was off by years. It’s way past time for voters to acknowledge that our kids – and our community – deserve better than what the state’s meager funding formula allows.

The average Colorado school district receives $1,872 less per student than the national average, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. The slow erosion of K-12 funding is due to a number of school finance legislative decisions dating back to 1982. In short, the combination of the Gallagher Amendment and the Taxpayer Bill of Rights have created a black hole of funding.

Read more at The Grand Junction Daily Sentinel.