On the night of Boston Mayor Thomas Menino's 2009 "State of the City" speech, students from Boston Latin high-school gathered to remind the Mayor how important art education is.
They rhythmically shouted "S.O.S. Save our Schools" outside Boston's Faneuil Hall as local dignitaries and municipal officials filed into the building for the Mayor's annual address.
Boston's students are concerned because arts are typically the first subjects trimmed whenever governmental budget cuts hit public education. The City of Boston expects a $140 million budget deficit this year, and so far the Mayor has only proposed a controversial, one-year wage freeze for union city workers. Taking away the raises would save $55 million, but the remaining $85 would have to come from somewhere. Paying for the education of Boston's children stands as the city's largest budgetary outlay. Let's just hope the city can find a way to keep its schools' curricula intact.
Below: Governor Deval Patrick shakes hands with Moriah Smith, the student representative to the Boston School Committee, who introduced Mayor Menino.
