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Recently, school districts across Florida announced that it would have to close schools and lay off teachers due to budget cuts. Classroom sizes will now increase, as students from closed schools are placed in other schools. Teachers, once considered to be in critical shortage, will leave the state in droves to locate job opportunities elsewhere.

Stunned by the news, people throughout the community cried "foul". How can this be?

The Florida Lottery was created in 1988, and since then it has given $18 billion to education. The stark reality, however, is that while 60% of appropriations went to public schools in 1988, only 23% was given to primary and secondary schools in 2007. Although a fund for school construction was added to the mix, the total appropriations to public schools still waned at 42% in 2007.

The state's scholarship program, Bright Futures (currently being criticized for granting scholarships on merit and not financial need) has been receiving the vast majority of lottery money. In addition, Florida college & university appropriations from the lottery appear to be rising.

While support for post-secondary education is commendable, voters are now lamenting over the elementary schools that will be shutting down and the drain of educators who will be leaving the state. Parents feel that education for their young children is being short-changed, as classrooms become crowded.

How could this be happening? Why can we not save our schools, programs, teachers, and children by providing support from the lottery funds?

Many people feel their opinions on these matters don't count. But they do.

What would happen if they wrote to their elected officials about the Florida Lottery? What would happen if they asked why appropriations for public schools have steadily decreased over the past ten years?

Could money from the lottery have helped prevent public schools from the demise it's in now? Some experts will probably say no, that what is truly needed are more taxes.

But looking at the average $4 billion revenue taken in every year by the Florida Lottery, it's an inescapable allegation-how does that next purchase of lotto tickets really help our children and their schools?