Seattle Press on Line - Letters to the Editor

Letters to the Editor

Aug 15, 2002 -- Educating Prisoners

To the Editor:

I read with interest the letter published in your July 18 issue ("Kohl-Welles needs a reality check") written by Linda Gray in response to my June 20 guest column, "Educating Inmates Worth the Investment."

While Gray deplores my support for post-secondary education opportunities for inmates in our state's prisons, she also blasts me for not supporting college education opportunities for our state's unemployed and dislocated workers.

She should have checked my legislative efforts. In fact, I have been the lead legislator in Olympia working to pass legislation to provide for college options for WorkFirst (welfare) recipients as well as for unemployed and dislocated workers. As chair of the Senate Higher Education Committee, I have long advocated affordable access to quality higher education. And, my legislation, SB 5201, known as HELP--Higher Education for Lifelong Progress--would allow eligible recipients to attend college full-time for up to two years (I'd prefer four years) to satisfy their work activity requirements. The bill has been championed by welfare reform advocates, including The Children's Alliance, Children's Home Society, NOW, the Fremont Public Association, and Welfare Rights Organizing Coalition.

I've spoken at national and regional conferences on the importance of assisting welfare recipients to become self-sufficient and get out of poverty through higher education rather than just to get off of public assistance by taking low-wage jobs. I've worked through the National Conference of State Legislatures in lobbying Congress and the Bush Administration to include post-secondary education as a work activity in the reauthorization of TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families). I've written many op-eds on the issue. Unfortunately, up till now, most Republican legislators, DSHS and the governor have resisted changes to our state's WorkFirst program, but I'm continuing to work on getting my bill through.

Regarding my support for inmate education, I absolutely believe it's the correct thing to do. It's productive for inmates as about 97 percent get out of prison and are more likely to become productive taxpaying citizens than they are to recidivate if they come out of prison with skills and education. It's also cost-effective for our taxpayers who foot the $25,000 cost per inmate per year in our prisons.

Supporting prison education programs makes sense. But so does supporting education programs for the unemployed, dislocated workers and welfare recipients. On that, Ms. Gray and I can agree.

Jeanne Kohl-Welles
State Senator, 36th Legislative District

Seattle’s Transit Woes

To the Editor:

Transit is one of the most difficult problems to solve in the Northwest. We often look at the Subways and trolley systems that operate elsewhere and say that they can be the answer. Most existing Subway and trolley systems were installed when construction costs were substantially lower than today. Forget inflation, today we have the added cost of all the added safety measures. We have the cost of the environmental impact statements. Then there is the fact that today we have to pay for the land that once was simply taken.

Ridership was not much of a problem in decades past as the love-affair with the automobile had not yet begun. Mass transit had a greater appeal than today as we simply hop into our cars and drive anywhere our hearts desire. Speed and convenience are essential components in the success of mass transit. Building systems that must slow as they cross existing roads also slowing automobile traffic is self defeating. It is time to consider the alternatives that would allow higher speeds without crossing existing traffic conduits.

Underground or overhead are the only common sense approach except for the consideration of cost. But since we are hell-bent on spending the money we move slowly on. Underground is much too costly as Seattle’s Bus tunnels have taught. The only approach that avoids conflicts while achieving higher speeds is the monorail proposals. We must consider all possibilities without ignoring others if we are to achieve any success in the improvement of our traffic woes.

Roger W Hancock

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