Washington Education Funding

Yesterday, the Washington State Senate Republicans released their K-12 education budget. In a time where the Supreme Court has ruled that Washington State public schools are unfunded this budget takes a knife to funding public education for our children's futures.

I have attached the Senate Bill if you wish to read, but as an overview this is the proposal:
- raises class sizes
- reduces special education funding
- reduces teacher pay AND eliminates cost of living raises AND eliminates National board bonuses
- eliminates the requirement for a certification to teach students
- does not address the impending levy cliff. As a result the additional funding allocated within this bill will be swallowed by the levy cliff.
- opens the door for a voucher system
As an educator I urge you to contact your legislators. Stand up for our children, our next generation.
Our children deserve better. Please write your state legislators and tell them you expect more. Better yet . . . visit them in Olympia!

http://lawfilesext.leg.wa.gov/biennium/2017-18/Pdf/Bill%20Reports/Senate/5607%20SBA%20WM%2017.pdf

ACTION ALERT: Secretary of Education Confirmation

Betsy DeVos was confirmed this morning, 12-11 (all 12 were R, all 11 were D). 

The vote now goes to the Senate floor, vote not scheduled yet but it will happen soon.

This is the time to call all of the Republican senators, and urge friends in red states to call their senators. If you can, call senators where you may have a connection--a state you have family in, or have lived in, etc. Make it personal. Tell your story of why public education is important to you and how DeVos is unqualified for this job.

From 5calls.org, a script to use:

Hi, my name is [Name] and I'm a concerned constituent from [City, State, Zip].

I'm calling to express my deep opposition to the confirmation of Betsy DeVos for Secretary of Education.

May I ask how [Senator’s Name] will be voting?

[If NO for Confirmation]: Please tell the Senator thank you for listening to their constituents. Have a good day.

[If YES for Confirmation]: Betsy DeVos has no experience in the public school system she would be overseeing. I urge the Senator to reconsider their position and reject DeVos’ confirmation. I will remember [Senator’s Name] stance in the next election.

[Optional: add anything else you wish to say here, if you have children mention how this would affect you]

[IF LEAVING A VOICEMAIL: please leave your entire home address to ensure your call is tallied]

List of Senators with their phone numbers: https://www.senate.gov/senators/contact/

Welcome to our blog!

Welcome to our blog! Here we hope to share legislative action and resources. This will be the hub for the group as we continue to grow and follow the 10 Actions for 100 Days.

I will still continue to email on a regular basis, but this way I don't clog up your inboxes. You can come here to find information, and also you can reply to posts and comment.