The latest from Julian Smith and Vics election notes! Several indicators show that, public ed is poised to make gains in this election. But public ed needs your help! We have a large number of educators running for office and the tax payer/voter is taking notice and beginning to ask why? Why with the new education initiatives coming out of the statehouse do so many close to public ed feel the need to become so deeply involved? We must tell them and educate them. These candidates have run competitive energetic campaigns and now its up to us to get out the vote. Your help in the next two days could be just the bump a candidate needs to get over the hump. Please call at least 10 people that you know are registered to vote. This can be family and friends. You dont need a voter list, you have one on your cell phone and its called contacts. Please call them and ask them to vote and to support the candidates that support public education in Indiana, and please identify those candidates for them. Thank you, Julian Vic’s Election Notes on Education #26– November 3, 2014 Dear Friends, Former State Senator Kathy Smith-Andrew has been a vigorous and dedicated supporter of public education since long before her service to Senate District 46 back in the 1990’s. On this final day of the election campaign, I salute her efforts to help elect three teachers in Southern Indiana near her Floyd County roots: Heidi Cade Sellers in House District 70 Dr. Kevin Sue Bailey in House District 72 Chuck Freiberger in Senate District 46 All are strong supporters of public education and are running excellent campaigns. We need them in the General Assembly to help restore the high priority on public education that has been missing from the current General Assembly. They were part of the list of 66 House and Senate races that I sent out earlier which have contests in which public school advocates can make a difference. It is not too late to send you those longer lists if you need another copy. We have one more day to help strong supporters of public education get elected! The fate of public education in Indiana will be decided on November 4th. Please reach out to a few more friends and neighbors before tomorrow to seek their support of candidates who will stand up for public education. Indiana House District 70 Representative Rhonda Rhoads voted for voucher expansion in 2013 and for the historically low school funding levels for non-recessionary times, 2% in 2013-14 and only 1% this year in 2014-15. She was one of only nine in the House who voted against the preschool pilot program that Governor Pence pushed hard to pass. That gives her the unusual position of being a retired kindergarten teacher who does not support preschool. She sponsored the bill which put into law the A-F system for labeling our schools, removing the labeling decision from the State Board of Education. She is a member of the House Education Committee. She is being challenged by Heidi Cade Sellers, a retired kindergarten teacher from the West Clark district with 34 years of experience in the classroom, who deserves the strong support of public school advocates. If you know anyone who lives in Sellersburg, Greenville, Lanesville, Corydon, or south of Corydon to the Ohio River, let them know you support Heidi Sellers for the Indiana House because she genuinely supports public education. Indiana House District 72 Representative Ed Clere voted exactly the same way as Representative Rhoads on expanding vouchers and supporting low public school funding. Public schools statewide were given a 1% increase this year, far less than the cost of living. Many school districts are in dire financial straits just trying to maintain their current level of services to their students. Representative Clere is also on the House Education Committee. He has heard our pleas in testimony on behalf of public schools but turned his back on public schools when it came time to vote. He is being challenged by Dr. Kevin Sue Bailey, a professor of English Education at IU-Southeast. She has worked on literacy education in her career for nearly 40 years. She deserves the strong support of public school advocates. If you know anyone who lives in New Albany or Floyds Knobs over to Georgetown, let them know you support Kevin Sue Bailey for the Indiana House because she genuinely supports public education. Indiana Senate District 46 Senator Ron Grooms voted for the poorly funded public school budget in 2013, giving schools a scant 1% increase in the current year, not even enough to keep up with inflation. Although he cast a greatly appreciated no vote on voucher expansion in 2013, he had earlier cast a yes vote on the historic 2011 voucher bill which gave public money to private and religious schools for the first time. He also voted in 2013 for House Bill 1427 which set the A-F school grading system into law instead of leaving the labeling to the State Board of Education. He is being challenged by Chuck Freiberger, a 31-year teacher in the New Albany-Floyd County Schools, with extensive experience as a Floyd County Commissioner (14 years) and before that on the Floyd County Council (12 years). He will strongly and consistently support public education and deserves the support of public school advocates. If you know anyone who lives in Georgetown, Floyds Knobs, New Albany, Clarksville or the western part of Jeffersonville, let them know you support Chuck Freiberger for the Indiana Senate because he understands and strongly supports public education. Call Today or Tonight I could go on, but the election is upon is. If public school advocates want to reverse the demise of public education in Indiana, strong advocates for public schools must be elected to the General Assembly. In our democracy, elections make all the difference. Kathy Smith-Andrew has been helping three public school advocates in this election. I urge you to pick one or two or three of the 66 contested races and make one more effort to contact friends and family today and tonight. These are three of the 66 races in which public school advocates across Indiana can make a huge difference with their votes and their actions on behalf of candidates who support public education. The complete lists are found in “Vic’s Election Notes #21” and “#22”. If you need another copy of these lists, just send me an email. The stakes are high. It is hard to believe that the experts predict a low turnout. We need strong legislators who will reverse the low priority given to public education in recent years. Good luck in your efforts and good luck as you vote tomorrow! Thanks for voting and advocating in support of public education! Best wishes, Vic Smith vic790@aol [Please note: Indiana Code 3-14-1-17 says that government employees including public school employees may not “use the property of the employee’s government employer to” support the “election or defeat of a candidate” and may not distribute this message “on the government employer’s real property during regular working hours.” Ironically, the law does not prevent private school employees from using computers purchased with public voucher money to distribute campaign materials. Private schools now financed in part by public voucher dollars have retained all rights under Indiana’s voucher laws to engage in partisan political campaigns.]
Posted on: Mon, 03 Nov 2014 17:27:55 +0000
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