Well, unless something changes in the next few days. It is not looking good for K-12 funding.
It also does not look good for getting non-traditional teachers in the classroom. Maybe those many many many Education Minnesota TV commercials worked to ensure only Union members could teach... I often wonder how much in dues/tax $/student funding went into those ads. Probably would have funded a couple of schools for at least a year...
Whichever side you are on, it is time to call your legislators and make your views known. See below for some updates.
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Parent's United News Page
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Politics in Minnesota
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No Education Bill? (from RAS LAC)
Last night the senate passed SF 3063, a bill allowing some fund transfers and alternative facilities authority and SF 2598, a bill relating to the Collaborative Urban Educator Program and the Metro School for the Deaf. Apparently, these are the only bills the senate intends to advance relating to education.
The senate has not passed and does not intend to pass an omnibus education bill.
That means several important provisions are in danger of falling by the wayside including:
1) Putting the education payment shift into law to be repaid.
(If this shift becomes a cut, Robbinsdale Area Schools will be cut $15 million.)
2) Allowing school boards to renew an existing referendum.
3) Providing a mechanism for school districts to be paid for
providing educational services to students from out of state while in treatment facilities in our district.
We need your help NOW in contacting your local legislators - especially your senators - to urge them to pass an education bill that includes the above provisions. In addition, contact the following house and senate leaders with the same message.
Legislative Leadership to Contact:
Rep. Mindy Greiling 651-296-5387
Rep. Margaret Anderson Kelliher 651-296-0171
Rep. Tony Sertich 651-296-0172
Sen . LeRoy Stumpf 651-296-8660
Sen. Larry Pogemiller 651-2967809
Legislator Links
Rep. Debra Hilstrom 651-296-3709
Rep. Lyndon Carlson 651-296-4255
Rep. Michael Nelson 651-296-3751
Rep. Ryan Winkler 651-296-7026
Rep. Sandra Peterson 651-296-4176
Rep. Sarah Anderson 651-296-5511
Sen. Ann Rest 651-296-2889
Sen. Linda Scheid 651-296-8869
Sen. Ron Latz 651-297-8065
Sen. Terri Bonoff 651-296-4314
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5 comments:
And if the $15 million is "cut," I suspect the District will have the same two options they always have in a budget year they are required to live within their means:
1) Cut those activities which are the lowest priority, and rethink the way they provide others so as to reduce costs, or
2) Cut those things most dear to parents, blame it on the State, stingy taxpayers and Republicans so as to extort another levy.
In the former case, I suspect that few parents would even notice the change, since the system is so inefficient already, so I'm betting that the latter course is the more likely.
J. Ewing
I, probably outnumbered in my caucus, would prefer no action this session on alternative teacher licensing. This needs more time than they have right now, and risk getting it wrong to either party's way of thinking.
There was a good op-ed piece in the Strib yesterday (5-13) regarding this subject written by Jonathan Zimmerman a prof at NYU.
In the article, according to Harvard's director of education only about 100 institutions awarding graduate degrees for teaching out of 1,300 of such institutions, were preparing the future teachers for the classroom. The rest she added "could be shut down tomorrow."
Mr Zimmerman commented that alternative cert. programs aren't doing much better. So his idea is instead of just 200 hours of training courses over 5-weeks, why not have a group like TFA take a 9-month education course, meeting 3 hours per week.
I think alternative routes to teacher certification would be a great asset for our children and their education and I wish there wasn't so much resistance against it.
CAK
For your convenience...
Star Trib Zimmerman
Oops...
Star Trib Zimmerman
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