CALL TO ACTION! STOP SB334!

SB334, this session's version of Voucher Expansion, was amended in the House and has returned to the senate for a vote to concur, vote down, or let it die. This session has proven interesting, to say the least.  Not only are votes looking more partisan when final votes are taken on Education measures, they also appear to be quite contentious between the GOP members of the House and Senate.  This could be positive for PUBLIC school advocates, as we were already able to STOP HB1004 and SB10 by speaking out, tweeting, emailing, calling, and posting concerns to our elected officials.  They have heard our outcry.  They know our displeasure.  They are aware of our concerns.  Now they must choose to ignore our voices during an election year or follow our urging and recognize our concerns by voting down any remaining bills destructive to PUBLIC education.  

This post asks you to once again contact your legislators, especially in the Senate, and urge them to VOTE NO on SB334.  It is time to shout out one more time to urge support for our PUBLIC schools by stopping destructive measures and financial fiasco.  SB334 (Voucher Expansion) once again straps the education budget to the favor of charter and private schools while draining our PUBLIC schools of much needed funds provided by Indiana's taxpayers.

Below is a graphic from Northeast Indiana Friends of Public Education detailing the immense sums of money being doled out for the "Choice Scholarships". Expanding these scholarships will further siphon money from PUBLIC schools in the already tight education budget.

Another graphic from Northeast Indiana Friends of Public Education shows the difference between voucher funded schools and our PUBLIC schools.  Taking funding from our PUBLIC schools does not seem fair when those schools receiving voucher money do not have to play by the same rules of providing for students.  If they are not expected to serve under the same requirements and standards, then they should not be receiving our PUBLIC tax dollars to fund their own agenda and pad the wallets of their corporate leaders.

Please take time to contact members of the Senate and ask them to stop draining our PUBLIC schools for corporate benefit and fund our PUBLIC schools without expanding vouchers and putting the money where it belongs.

Click here for twitter handles of legislators.

"TWITTER STORM" SUPPORTING PUBLIC EDUCATION

Its time for a PUBLIC ED support "Twitter Storm" in light of the Institute for Quality Education's upcoming Quality Education Celebration, celebrating National School Choice Week by celebrating school choice options in Indiana, being held in the Indiana Statehouse Atrium on Monday, January 25.

The "Storm" will run from 4:00pm Sunday, January 24 until 5:00pm Monday, January 25.  During this storm we ask that PUBLIC ED advocates post tweets that include links to great public schools data, the effects of vouchers on public schools, and any highlights of positives of Indiana's PUBLIC schools.

Recently The Institute for Quality Education took a quote from a Chalkbeat article and published it on their twitter account claiming that ISTA President Teresa Meredith "supports" vouchers.  

Here is the actual full quote from the article.

"Clearly the public is unhappy with direction our state has gone and wants to get back to common sense support for students and public schools,” said Indiana State Teachers Association President Teresa Meredith in a statement. “Students’ chances for success should not depend on winning a charter lottery or living in the right zip code.”

Hoosier Voices For Public Education founder, Philip D. Arnold, states that he believes the intention of the quote was to say Public Schools are being robbed by the use of vouchers and "scholarships" being handed out based on geography or affluent status. 

When asked about the quote, President Meredith told Mr. Arnold, "Our government is selling off Public schools with vouchers and 'scholarships'.  No kid should have to have a voucher to get a good education"

Philip Arnold points out information from reviews critical of the Friedman research cited in the Chalkbeat article. An article posted by The National Education Policy Center states, " A recent report from the Friedman Foundation for Educational Choice purports .... But a new review of that report finds it is based on weak underlying research and that it misrepresents findings."  Read full article.

To show our continued support and advocacy for our PUBLIC SCHOOLS, let's flood twitter feeds with our PRO-PUBLIC ED information leading up to, and during, the big I4QED "choice" celebration.  When you tweet or post pro-public education please use #INpublicED along with any other of your "hashtags" and please tweet @i4qed @h4qed and @HoosierVoices along with others you wish to tweet to.  

In recent days Indiana's Public Education Advocates have pushed for positive moves in the current legislative session.  We need to continue our push of support and continue to show that our PUBLIC schools are worth the fight as we take on the volatile and poisonous "reform" minded legislators and the benefactors of their legislative agenda (benefactors like Institute for Quality Education, The Mind Trust, Hoosiers for Quality Education, Charter school operators , Private School financial officers, ALEC, Koch brothers, Friedman Foundation)