Kicking out Swiss kids
Switzerland is one of the richest countries in the world. Per capita wealth is among the 5 highest. The city of Geneva’s position is geographically curious: the Swiss city is almost entirely surrounded by France. Nowhere in the Geneva canton is more than 3 miles from the French border. Geneva has the highest cost of living in Switzerland. That cost is so high that some Swiss citizens are forced to live across the border in France. Around 115,000 people work in Geneva but live across the border, where the cost of living is cheaper. Swiss families priced out of Geneva living in France are reeling from another blow: their children are now being elbowed out of Geneva schools. The Geneva authorities’ decision to bar pupils who live in the Swiss city’s surrounding French suburbs and villages has left parents angry, children worried, and French municipalities fuming at having to absorb more than 2,000 extra kids into their classrooms.
“We’ve become second-class Swiss citizens,” lamented Joana, a 35-year-old mother of two, declining to give her surname for professional reasons. Like many cross-border commuters, Joana, who works in health care, left Geneva due to the lack of affordable housing. “We agreed to leave our sub-standard home in the city center to move to the countryside – but crossing the border was conditional on access to Swiss schools,” she said. Around 115,000 people work in Geneva but live across the border, where the cost of living is cheaper. French mayor, Jean-Luc Pecorini, can see the border from his office, less than 100 meters away on the other side of the highway. “We’re not happy,” he said, evoking a sentiment shared by other French mayors. He called Geneva’s decision – taken in June and coming into force at the start of the next school year in September 2026 – “abrupt.” Opening a new classroom would cost around $93,000, he explained. A source with knowledge of the figures, who did not want to be identified, said around 2,500 pupils would initially be affected, followed by “a steady stream of students” who would otherwise have gone to Swiss schools later on.
Geneva is refusing to budge, citing demographic pressure and a shortage of existing schools. The change represents “a saving of just over $34 million over four years,” the Geneva authorities said. “Emmanuel,” a father of four affected by the decision, who did not want to give his surname, called Geneva’s attitude “discriminatory,” noting that so-called “frontalier” workers like himself pay their taxes in Switzerland, with only a third remitted to France. By kicking out pupils, most of whom are Swiss and intend to work in Switzerland, “Geneva is exporting the burden of schooling to France, while our schools are already under severe pressure in terms of capacity,” it said.
Entertaining Education Experiences
Attendance at my monthly introvert meetup is it an all time high.
It’s just that I feel like we’re attracting the wrong crowd.
Thank you, student loans, for helping me get through college.
I don’t think I can ever repay you.
For a class project, a college professor asks all of his students to brainstorm and yell out different kinds of stereotypes.
“All blonde girls are dumb!” yells a boy in the back.
“Sony!” Yells the blonde girl in the front.
What did the kamikaze flight instructor tell his students?
“I’m only gonna show you this once.”
October 20th Birthdays
1964 – Kamala Harris, 1986 – Jennifer Freeman, 1970 – Michelle Malkin, 1963 – Julie Payette
1980 – John Krasinski, 1958 – Viggo Mortensen, 1953 – Tom Petty, 1986 – Bruno Mars