Hey, it's
Screen Free Week
(May 1-7)! PAA is an
endorser
of this important event! So....m
aybe print this newsletter out and read it on actual paper?
Thank Congress for the better-than-expected budget, but ask them
to reconsider cuts to Title IIA funding
We expect a vote any time now on a budget deal to keep the federal government running through the end of September.
The good news: Fortunately, the deal does not bow to the Trump/Devos education agenda which includes major cuts to academic and child benefit programs in favor of vouchers and expanded charter schools. And the deal actually increases funding for such Head Start, 21st Century Learning Centers, and a few others.
The potentially bad news: But class-size reduction funds -- a part of federal Title IIA -- are under attack at a time when school staffing levels are higher than ever.
According to PAA co-founder Leonie Haimson, executive director of Class Size Matters (CSM), districts throughout the country have already lost thousands of teaching positions since the Great Recession which were never replaced -- increasing class sizes in many schools to sky-high levels. Many districts use Title IIA to keep teachers on staff to prevent further class size increases. In 2015-2016, thirty-five percent of school districts used their Title IIA funds to hire teachers on staff to reduce class size- or more likely to prevent layoffs, and this was especially true in the highest poverty districts.
What can you do?
CSM has made it easy for you to send a quick message to Congress today using
this link.
Please do it now, since the vote is likely to come up any time! Thanks!
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Better Fed budget #noschoolvouchers but needs Title IIA class size reduction funds #lowerclasssizeworks #parentschoosepubliced
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Leonie's comments above come in part from an essay she recently published on Alternet,
In her article, Leonie points out, "Trump and his Education Secretary Betsy Devos want to completely eliminate Title IIA funds, while at the same time increasing government support to privately-run schools, including charters, parochial and private schools. They claim to be supporting a parent's right to choose by expanding these options. Yet most parent's first choice is a well-resourced, neighborhood public school with reasonably small classes, to ensure that their children are provided with sufficient attention and feedback from their teachers. The proposed elimination of Title IIA funds will work against parent choice, by making it even more difficult for parents to access these options - and will undermine the quality of education their children receive, especially those students who need small classes the most."
Another published PAA author
Congratulations to PAA co-founder Pamela Grundy. Pam's newest book, Color and Character: West Charlotte High and the American Struggle over Educational Equality
is set to be available this fall.
According to the publication material, "Drawing on nearly two decades of interviews with students, educators, and alumni, Pamela Grundy uses the history of a community's beloved school to tell a broader American story of education, community, democracy, and race-all while raising questions about present-day strategies for school reform."
Pam has her own Amazon page - check it out!
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If you share
our overall goals
of progressive, positive education reform and more parent input in education policy making, we invite you to affiliate with us if you are an existing group, or to form a new PAA chapter. The more of us there are, the stronger our voice will be at every level.
Here's how!
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If you have questions, comments, suggestions or stories to share, please e-mail us at info@parentsacrossamerica.org or visit
www.parentsacrossamerica.org.
Looking for regular updates on key education stories? Join the PAA News List by e-mailing PAAnews-subscribe@yahoogroups.com.
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