If there are fewer to support social security

[shraby]

when the baby boomers retire, why are new and bigger schools being built all the time. I can see replacing old schools, but I wouldn't thing they would need new ones and bigger ones. If the old schools were sufficient for the baby boomer generation, they should be sufficient for the so called smaller numbers of the following children.

[theboss]

1. Because the schools are being built where people live

The population of Faquier County in Northern Virginia has exploded in the last few years. Do you recommend sending the students to elementary schools 45 miles away?

[theboss]

2. On second thought, is this question a joke?

I mean, seriously. Did I just fall for a prank or something?

[wurzel]

3. "Fewer to support SS" is a total red herring.

IF productivity increases 100% over next forty years. And this is quite possible. You only need half the workers to support SS. This "too few workers" talk is as if productivity will remain static. It never has.

[stavka]

4. ...or if there wasn't such low a cap on maximum contribution

nice to know so many who actually work for a living contribute like 8% of their income for any possible income they will earn in a year, but hey once you hit that contribution ceiling, it's like getting a tax break.

It's easier being rich

[wurzel]

5. That's the truth. There should be no cap!

[bleedingheart]

10. the cap on Social Security is a slap in the face to the working poor

and middle class.

[Inland]

6. The baby boom would have already been through the system by 1980

Therefore if it seems like lots of schools are being built in your area, it might be because population has shifted to your locality OR depreciation of schools, since the schools built for the boomers would hve been completed nearly thirty years ago.

[shraby]

7. Our population has stayed relatively static

yet new grade schools have been and some enlarged. The high school was replace with a much bigger school one reason was the old school was 2 stories and old, but still the new one is larger. I asked because it seems I'm missing something. I know in the 60s and 70s a lot of the smaller schools were consolidated into a monster school which monetarily was probably a good idea, but it wasn't a plus for the children, and I know the baby boomers were out of school by around 1980 or so..my brother is one, he graduated in 1964. But if they had fewer children than previous generations, why do we need more schools and teachers instead of fewer. This happens all over the country, so it can't be because of population shifts.

[Inland]

8. But the population moves.

City schools close and suburban schools are built: even neighborhood by neighborhood in Chicago, some have lost children and some have gained and need elementaries. And they depreciate. That may explain a lot of it.

[Yupster]

11. Smaller class sizes

may be part of the answer.

When I was a kid, we always had 30-33 in a class. Now some states cap elementary classes at 22 or so per class.

In high schools, more space needed because of teachnology and more specialized classes.

Also probably lots more administrative staff who need offices.

[bleedingheart]

9. So if the old schools are in disrepair should we not fix or rebuild?

Funny but my house was built by the previous owner 35 years ago...and guess what I had to do the following in order to keep my investment in my home from depreciating...

1. New insulation
2. New windows
3. New kitchen (plumbing was going bad, needed new appliances as they broke and the old cabinets wasted a lot of space)
4. New bathroom downstairs as it was leaking badly
5. Put in sidewalks and a patio since they weren't there before...

Loads more...and I have a replacement roof to put on in about three years.

My district just rebuilt a High School, they built two new elementary schools and will continue to remodel and rebuild...all of it is great!
In fact the old elementary school I went to was having problems due to mine subsidence...fiscally it made more sense to remove it, and rebuild...(we build structures on concrete pillars into the mines...cuz the mining companies left PA a mess)