HOOSIER VOICES CELEBRATES SUPPORTERS OF PUBLIC EDUCATION

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Hoosier Voices for Public Education would like to thank all our supporters for our growing success and our statewide reach.  We are amazed and excited about the opportunity we have had and will continue to have to bring pertinent information regarding PUBLIC education to those who truly support all that PUBLIC education represents.  As we celebrate the success of making over 1,300 “friends” on Facebook and reaching over 7,200 page views on the blog (in our first 37 days of existence on blogspot), we would like to give back to our supporters.  Make sure you have liked the Hoosier Voices page on FB, clicked like on the celebration post on Facebook,  and comment below on this celebration post by our 2 month anniversary (March 25). We will randomly select one lucky supporter to receive a free gift.

TUESDAY TATTLER 6

This week the "tattler" looks at the Hoosier Mom's grading of our Indiana state representatives, especially those who received "F" grades for their lack of support for PUBLIC education.

When you look for your legislator's grade on any of the five "tests" used by the Hoosier Mom for her "mid-term" report card, you are going to want to look at a couple of things to check the reasoning for your representative's overall grade.  When looking at the overall "grades" you will want to note the method of grading.  There is a possible point total of 10 or 0 for each "test".  This makes for a possible total of 50 points for the "mid-term".  Representatives received full credit (10 points) for voting in favor of PUBLIC education.  In the reverse, the representatives received no credit (0) for voting against PUBLIC education or by "skipping the test" (not showing up to vote).

The Hoosier Mom utilized the following grading scale to determine each representative's mid-term grade based on their overall mid-term test results.
 

80-100, A
 

60-79, B

40-59, C

20-39, D

0-19, F

If your representative received a grade of C or below, it is time to question why they are voting against PUBLIC education, or if they are skipping out on votes to save face from going against their caucus.  Click the image below to see how each individual representative scored on the 5 "tests" in the first half of the session.

Hoosier Mom's Grade Report

REMEDIATION

It is not only vital that we note how our legislators are voting, or if they are skipping out on votes on key legislation to save face, it is also important that we begin to look at proper remediation techniques to see that they pass their final exam.  As good "teachers" we must utilize all our available tools to ensure that our "students" understand the full scope of their voting, and how we expect them to rectify this by showing better support of PUBLIC education in their future voting.  What tools do we have at our disposal to better "remediate"?  That my friends is the one question we have an easy answer for.  Here is your "Remediation Tool Kit"

1) Phone Calls - Use the switchboards to contact your direct representatives and key committee members to inform them how they can vote to support PUBLIC education.

2) Emails - Continue to use the email links to email your representatives regarding key legislation and how they can vote to support PUBLIC education. Contact the House Contact the Senate Contact Education Committees

3) Letter Writing - Utilize letter writing skills to "smail" mail your legislators now to inform them, should legislation come for vote of full house, how they can vote to support PUBLIC education.

4) Facebook (social media) - Continue to create and/or share posts supporting PUBLIC education and callling for action in posts to inform others of what they can do to support PUBLIC education.

5) Visit Legislature - Make trips to the house to speak with legislators or to testify in support of PUBLIC education when key education legislation comes up for discussion and vote.

6) BE ACTIVE - STAY ACTIVE - We used our voices to vote in November in support of PUBLIC education.  We me must stay active to make sure the voices (and votes) of 1.3 million hoosiers continue to be heard in support of PUBLIC education.

Mid-Term Grades: State Representative

Hoosier Mom's Public Education Grade Book

Spring 2013


It is that time in the legislative session when the Hoosier Mom must submit the mid-term grade card for our legislators. The grades are based on their support for public education as measured through their votes. 

The Hoosier Mom chose 5 bills as "tests" of our legislator's support for public education this session. Just like in school, legislators will earn points by passing the test and using their vote in support of public education. Just like in public school, legislators that chose to not take the test do not earn points: there is no make-up test. 


The 5 tests were:

HB 1003 - Voucher Program Expansion

HB 1334 - Singling Out Public School Employees & Freedom of Speech

HB1337 - Corporate Takeover of Schools Based On Fatally Flawed A-F Scale

HB1338 - Virtual Charter Expansion

HB 1357 - Deprofessionalization of School Administrators


There are many legislators who are failing to support public education. The Hoosier Mom suggests a voter takeover of these legislator's positions, especially if their grades do not improve over the course of the session. Accountability is the priority here: they must be held accountable to the voters.

Early intervention can also be important in changing a failing legislator's grades. Voters - please contact your failing legislators and provide early intervention services. They need direct remediation on the educational priorities for Hoosier children: the voters expect better from our legislators. This may require extra time on your part - services via phone calls, emails, visiting the statehouse, writing letters, etc. 

If we all work together, we can turn-around the grades of these failing legislators and re-direct their focus on providing a high-quality public education for all Hoosier children.

The gradebook is as follows:

MIDWAY RECAP

The Legislative session reached its midway point this week and the following is a recap and preview of what is to come.

The House finished their bills Monday night and the Senate on Tuesday. Now they will come back on Monday with committee meetings to start hearings of bills that passed the other house. The Senate Education Committee will hear HB 1003 whenever Sen. Kruse wants to schedule it. It could be as early as Wednesday March 6th. So the Senate Education Committee members will be the first to consider it. It is not too early to let every Senator know that there are many people who oppose the huge new costs of HB 1003, not to mention the concept.

No committee meeting for Senate Education has been posted yet, so we don't know what they will do on Wednesday

Positives from first half

HB 1337 met its demise in the 11th hour shenanigans attempted by Representative Behning.  Thanks to all the Republicans who crossed the aisle to vote down this fiasco and send a message to the Representative from Indianapolis.  His bill failed big.  The tally?  33 ayes and 61 nays.   This was a huge vote FOR public schools and AGAINST a seemingly unquenchable thirst to put public schools in the hands of private school profiteers.

SB 416, although it met its demise when its sponsor (Senator Carlin Yoder of Middlebury) pulled it in the 11th hour from the full senate, still passed the Senate Education committee with unanimous support and could be revived in an amendment to another bill as the session moves forward.

ALEC instigated education legislation seems to be falling apart across the country.  This is a huge positive, but also should serve as a warning to watch for more double sided shenanigans to come from those who are ALEC members in the Indiana House ans Senate.  They will not stop without hearing the message of our VOICES loud and clear.  Do you think Representative Behning hears the message yet?

Negatives from the first half

Most anything else could be considered negative.  The fact that there is a second half coming is negative enough.  We must keep a cautious eye on byth houses again as they manipulate and "amend" bills coming to them from the other house.  Be ready to continue the calls, emails, and letter writing to show that 1.3 million voters in November chose to support PUBLIC education and we intend to put a stop to the constant attempts to destroy our PUBLIC schools through ALEC legislation disguised as "reform". 

HB 1334 passed by a vote of 62-33.  HB 1334 is the bill that singles out public school employees by prohibiting their school employers from deducting voluntary contributions that employees wish to have deducted from their own pay for political activities.  In some circles those voluntary contributions would be considered “exercising your right to free speech.”  In some other circles, those voluntary contributions would be lauded as evidence of bona fide voter engagement.   Not for public school employees though. 


And on top of everything else, HB 1334 is not even drafted very cleanly when it comes to the payroll issues—leaving us all to wonder what is and is not permissible with regard to dues deduction.  HB 1334 is pretty awful and anti-teacher and anti-Association.  We have more work to do on this one.

Check back here often, starting Monday, for more updates and calls to action regarding our PUBLIC schools and the destruction they face at the hands of the Indiana Legislature.