Dear Educators, certificated, classified, administrative, board members and friends of education:
From now until May 19th, educators will be in a election battle. Defeat in this epic struggle could cause many of our fellow teachers to be looking for other employment. Furthermore, if we lose, many children will be denied adequate student/teacher ratios, many of the programs that students desperately need, will be diminished or disappear, and the education of the next generation will be greatly reduced. The possibilities are bad regardless of how one looks at it.
But educators are "problem-solvers" and the good news is, we can do something about it. But we must act now, with purpose and haste.
Start by, meeting with people in person, call, email, send letters, reinstate the Pony Express, use carrier pigeons, western union, and/or smoke signals to every person that you know. Urge, beg, or ask really nicely that they vote for props 1A-6A.
Prop 1A -- It's a rainy day fund, a security basket for the future. It initially it involves raising taxes and is vital to education. Additionally, it creates jobs, addresses critical infrastructure issues, and solves future issues.
Prop 1B -- If Prop 1A isn't passed, Prop 1B fails as well. This one is for educational funding, money for the local school district AND colleges and universities. It creates a budget stabilization fund.
Prop 1C -- Lottery modernization act, it is designed to improve the lottery and allows the state to borrow $5 billion from future lottery earnings. The new and improved lottery will, hopefully, reduce tax needs in future.
Prop 1D -- Protects Childhood Funding
Prop 1E -- Mental Health Funding
Prop 1E -- Prevents pay increases to elected officials when the state is running at deficit.
This is not something we can wait on or hope the problem goes away. We cannot be cavalier about it, nor stick our heads in the sand. Time is short. We must act now.
Get out and treat this as one of the most important things you have to do, because it is. A low turnout is expected so we can be the difference makers.
Moreover, we are going to contact fellow educators and anyone sympathetic to education to get their promise that they will support the propositions on May 19th.
We will hopefully encourage people put a bumper sticker on the car because the more people who see the message, the more votes we are likely to receive. While any advertising supporting education and recognizing teachers/educators is helpful, “Those Who Can do…those who CARE, Teach” bumper stickers are available (www.teachersthatcare.com) and will be part of a show of solidarity on their cars as a show of solidarity. The more people that see these stickers or others will be reminded that teachers are the lifeblood of education and the more that are seen the greater the opportunity to rally educators together!
We know that the loyal opposition, the Howard Jarvis folks and others, will be mobilizing to keep these propositions from passing. If they succeed, it will be a severe blow. It will put us in a far more precarious position than we have ever been before.
We cannot wait because there are 37 days left until the election. We must be the responsible entity that saves the state from it's doom. The future is now and the future is US. Let us be the spokespeople and shout it from the mountain-tops: Educaton is the future!
For education,
Chip Fraser
Stephen P. Blum, Esq.
PS> "In the present circumstances, no one can afford to assume that someone else will solve their problems. Every individual has a responsibility to help guide our global family in the right direction. Good wishes are not sufficient; we must become actively engaged."
The Dalai Lama
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