Progressive Breakfast: Our School Funding Crisis Has a Cause: Bad Leadership

MORNING MESSAGE

Jeff Bryant

Our School Funding Crisis Has a Cause: Bad Leadership

Oklahoma schools are so poorly funded some of them may move from five days a week to four. This is the sad result of our elected leaders' irrational resolve to slash taxes and redirect more funds to unfounded experiments like charter schools, rather than follow the evidence that there is a direct correlation between what we spend on schools and how well our students perform.

Calling It Quits on Climate

Trump Will Withdraw U.S. From Paris Climate Agreement. NYT:“President Trump announced on Thursday that the United States would withdraw from the Paris climate accord, weakening efforts to combat global warming and embracing isolationist voices in his White House who argued that the agreement was a pernicious threat to the economy and American sovereignty. In a speech from the Rose Garden, Mr. Trump said the landmark 2015 pact imposed wildly unfair environmental standards on American businesses and workers.”

States band together to form own climate alliance. Politico:“The governors of California, Washington and New York have agreed to form an alliance aimed at meeting the U.S. climate goals. The new coalition, called the United States Climate Alliance, will serve as a way for states interested in dealing with climate change to coordinate.’If the President is going to be AWOL in this profoundly important human endeavor, then California and other states will step up,’ Gov. Jerry Brown said in a statement.”

Here Comes the Judge

White House asks Supreme Court to reinstate travel ban. Politico:“President Donald Trump has asked the Supreme Court to revive his controversial travel ban executive order, hoping that the justices will give the green light to a policy repeatedly blocked by lower courts. In filings Thursday night, the Justice Department asked the high court to temporarily lift injunctions that bar officials from carrying out Trump’s directive to suspend visa issuance to citizens of six majority-Muslim countries and halt the flow of refugees to the U.S. from across the globe. The Trump administration also asked the justices to add the legality of the travel ban to the high court’s docket.

The Road Ahead

Infrastructure Is About More Than Roads and Bridges: Inside the Millions of Jobs Campaign. TruthOut:“We were deeply concerned that the president and the majority of both the House and Senate were going to try to create privatized work that really only benefits the wealthy and doesn’t really benefit the mass of people out there. We began to say, ‘We need to do something about this. We need to get out in front of this. We need to put out an agenda that is pro-family, that is pro-worker, that is pro-community, and is pro-opportunity,’ which is what we did. We worked with the Congressional Progressive Caucus to do just that.”

EPA head Scott Pruitt didn’t show up for a speech in Kentucky, but 175 protesters did. ThinkProgress:“Even when EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt isn’t there, people still feel inspired to protest his pattern of climate-denial and industry favoritism. About 175 people demonstrated against regulatory rollback Wednesday in Kentucky, despite Pruitt’s canceling a scheduled speech at the Kentucky Association of Manufacturers conference in Lexington.’It hurts us all,’ Hank Graddy, a member of the Sierra Club’s Kentucky chapter, told the Herald Leader about the Trump administration’s proposed cuts to the EPA. ‘In Kentucky, we don’t want EPA to lead us backwards.’”

The Democrats’ ‘Working-Class Problem.” American Prospect:“The Democrats don’t have a ‘white working-class problem.’ They have a ‘working-class problem,’ which progressives have been reluctant to address honestly or boldly. The fact is that Democrats have lost support with all working-class voters across the electorate, including the Rising American Electorate of minorities, unmarried women, and millennials. This decline contributed mightily to the Democrats’ losses in the states and Congress and to the election of Donald Trump.”

More from OurFuture.org:

Trump’s Superfund Cuts: Doing Less With Less. Katharine Kiel:“Trump claims his Superfund cuts of more than $300 million will make toxic cleanups more efficient. But every budget reduction over the past decade has reduced the number of sites cleaned up, and increased the time required to complete them.”

Progressive Breakfast is a daily morning email highlighting news stories of interest to activists. Progressive Breakfast and OurFuture.org are projects of People's Action.more »

Betsy DeVos: ‘It’s Not My Job to Protect Students Against Discrimination’

Betsy's FOR PROFIT SCHOOLS FAILED!

This is right out of the Fascist Playbook!

'Keep 'em poorly educated so they won't noticed ya just screwed up!'

Leslie Lehmann

No, it's her job to rape the treasury and insure only rich white kids get educated...but only enough to follow Republican Jesus.

Betsy DeVos: ‘It’s Not My Job to Protect Students Against Discrimination’

Education Betsy DeVos just refused to say whether she would
step in to withhold federal funding from private schools
that discriminate against LGBT students in…

BLUEDOTDAILY.COM

Education Betsy DeVos just refused to say whether she would step in to withhold federal funding from private schools that discriminate against LGBT students in her first visit to Congress since her confirmation hearing in January.

In a meeting with the House appropriations subcommittee on Wednesday to defend the administration’s cuts of roughly $10.6 billion from the education department’s budget, DeVos pushed her school choice agenda, arguing the states should create their own voucher programs and parents pick the schools that best fit their children.

Mother Jones continues:

But she quickly faced pushback from the subcommittee’s Democratic members. Rep. Katharine Clark (D-Mass.) asked DeVos if she could think of a “situation of discrimination or exclusion that, if a state approved it for its voucher program, that you would step in and say, ‘That’s not how we’re going to use our federal dollars’?” Clark pointed to Indiana’s Lighthouse Christian Academy, where students could be denied admission if they come from homes that violate biblical lifestyle standards—anything from “homosexual or bisexual activity” to “practicing alternate gender identity.”

“We have to do something different than continuing a top-down, one-size-fits-all approach,” DeVos responded. “States and local communities are best equipped to make decisions and framework on behalf of their students.”

Later, Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.) said it was “appalling and sad” that the federal government would step away from its responsibility to protect students from discrimination. DeVos clarified that the education department would continue to investigate allegations of discrimination, despite the proposed $1.7 million cut to the department’s Office of Civil Rights. “I want to be very clear: I am not in any way suggesting that students should not be protected and should not be in the safe and secure and nurturing learning environment,” she said.

http://www.bluedotdaily.com/betsy-devos-its-not-my-job-to-protect-students-against-discrimination/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=BD&utm_campaign=facebook_BD

A sobering look at what Betsy DeVos did to education in Michigan — and what she might do as secretary of education

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/answer-sheet/wp/2016/12/08/a-sobering-look-at-what-betsy-devos-did-to-education-in-michigan-and-what-she-might-do-as-secretary-of-education/?utm_term=.766752747164

"Taxpayers for Common Sense", : Trump(eting) the Budget!

Trump(eting) the Budget

What should we expect from the President's first budget plan? 

Weekly Wastebasket | Volume XXII  No.20

The first full budget of the Trump Administration is expected to be released on Tuesday. 

This will be the version – with thousands of pages of text, numbers, and charts – that expands upon the 62-page skinny budget that was released back on March 17. It’s particularly important because the first full budget of any president gives the public the first truly detailed picture of how the administration wants to prioritize and govern.  

If you recall, the Trump skinny budget was emaciated even compared to its immediate predecessors. President Obama’s weighed in at 140 pages and President Bush’s was 175. Both included budget numbers for mandatory programs (two-thirds of overall federal spending) and revenue and spending projections for ten years. President Trump’s only included spending estimates for the discretionary budget and only for fiscal years 2017 and 2018.

"Every President’s budget is pretty much declared dead on arrival, [but] this one might be deader than most."

We have been anxiously awaiting seeing the meat of the detail on the skin-and-bones previews. Additionally, the week before a President’s budget request is released there is usually a steady drip of budget details so that the Administration controls the narrative. This week there have been drips of information to be sure, but not about the budget.

We know the budget will add one ship (nine total) to what the previous administration had planned for FY18. Transportation Secretary Chao declared the Gateway Project on Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor to be “an absolute priority.” According to budget documents obtained by the Washington Post, 22 programs at the Department of Education will get the axe and some of the savings will go into charter schools and vouchers for private and religious schools. The total cut to the Department of Education is said to be $9.2 billion which hews closely to what was in the skinny budget. But that is about all the detail we have.

If the skinny budget numbers track for the rest of the federal government – and there’s no reason to think they don’t – then there are going be some legislative fights in the administration’s future. Members of the Appropriations Committee and even the Senate Majority Leader have been quick to point out that they write the spending bills. And Energy and Water Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman Mike Simpson (R-ID) has already declared that he thinks the entire government will operate under a full-year continuing resolution for fiscal year 2018. Every President’s budget is pretty much declared dead on arrival, this one might be deader than most. But writing off the entire appropriations process in mid-May is unprecedented.

We hope lawmakers dig into the budget and ask themselves questions about the programs they want to restore. Are they duplicative, like the Denali Commission? Are the programs failing to deliver the intended results? Are they outdated, like the Essential Air Service? Or lack priorities like the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ civil works program? Instead of reflexively restoring funding to various programs, lawmakers should evaluate the administration’s justification for making the cuts and come up with their argument in response to restore them. “Because we’ve always funded it” is not a justification.

This budget cycle is way behind and getting it done will be a heavy lift. We anxiously await the first budget to see what is proposed, what gets cut and boosted, and what gimmicks are employed. ◻

Quote of the Week:

"[Tax reform] will have to be revenue-neutral. We have a $20 trillion dollar debt."

- Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on Bloomberg Politics.

Texas State Senator Don Huffines: Republican Senator Captured On Video Yelling At School Children – Video

Republican Senator Captured On Video Yelling At School Children – Video

March 3, 2017 by Samuel Warde 

Texas Senator is caught on tape yelling at school children and parents during a PTA Rally Day discussion about education.

With Betsy DeVos how heading the Department of Education, Americans are hearing more an more about school vouchers.

Texas State Senator Don Huffines was captured on video on Monday lashing out at students from the Richardson I.S.D. during a discussion about education as part of theTexas PTA Rally Day events hosted in Austin, Texas.

“What are you scared of,” he can be heard shouting at the beginning of the video. “What are all y’all scared of?”

A person in the audience can be heard responding: “That money you’re sending to private schools should be used to enhance public schools.”

Huffines, clearly enraged responds: “What makes you think it isn’t? What makes you think it’s your money? It’s the businesses. It’s their money. Sixty-two percent of all property tax is paid by business.”

As The Dallas Morning News reports, “During one exchange, a student pushed back against a proposal to give students a stipend to attend private schools. She said, as other critics contend, that the voucher would not be large enough to allow the student to go to many high-dollar schools in North Texas.”

She can be heard about 30 seconds into the video, asking:

“Excuse me Senator, I don’t mean to offend you but you are speaking on behalf of the students, and as a student of public education I disagree with this completely. I’ve gone to a private school before…with these vouchers, what are you going to get — $5000 a year? The majority of these private schools are $5000 a semester. How are lower income families supposed to pay for the rest of the school year?”

Huffines can be heard exploding on her, calling her selfish.

““Oh, so it doesn’t pay for all their education. It doesn’t pay for all their education, does it? The $5000 won’t pay for it, right? So you’re saying since we’re not giving them enough money to pay for all their education, screw ’em they can’t go to private school! Do you want me to give them $15,000? Is that what you want? So they can all go to Hockaday or St. Mark’s? That’s the most selfish thing I’ve ever heard.”

*****Matt Langston, a spokesman for Huffines, compared the meeting to an ambush, stating: “Where other politicians might have run, Don Huffines stayed and endured the ambush-style attack, then calmly answered more questions for 15 more minutes, including questions from students.”

However, as The Dallas Morning News Reports,

Meredyth Childress, a PTA member and mother of one of the students at the meeting, said the students were not political operatives looking to “ambush” Huffines. They were given articles to review about private school vouchers before meeting with the senator. “We’re very proud of the students,” Childress said. “Both sides were passionate. One side displayed the proper respect and decorum. One side did not.”

Richardson ISD Superintendent Jeannie Stone issued a prepared statement expressing pride in how the children conducted themselves during the discussion:

“My disappointment in Senator Huffines’ comments is only exceeded by my pride in our students, who showed Austin how well public school students are prepared for life after high school. They were poised and ready for a fact-based conversation about some of the most pressing issues facing Texas today.”

http://samuel-warde.com/2017/03/republican-senator-caught-tape-yelling-school-children/

GOP destroying public education: Bill 610

Ed Coonce

This is what the regime's plans are:

Sad day for public education in the United States. The U.S. House of Representatives has introduced Bill 610. This bill will effectively start the school voucher system to be used by children ages 5 to 17, and starts the de-funding process of public schools.

The bill will eliminate the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESSA) of 1965 which is the nation's educational law and provides equal opportunity in education. It is a comprehensive program that covers programs for struggling learners, AP classes, ESL classes, classes for minorities such as Native Americans, Rural Education, Education for the Homeless, School Safety (Gun-Free schools), Monitoring and Compliance and Federal Accountability Programs. The bill also abolishes the Nutritional Act of 2012 (No Hungry Kids Act) which provides nutritional standards in school breakfast and lunch. For our most vulnerable, this may be the ONLY nutritious food they have in a day. The bill has no wording whatsoever protecting special needs kids, no mention of IDEA and FAPE.

Some things the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESSA) of 1965 does for Children with Disabilities:

-ensures access to the general education curriculum
-ensures access to accommodations on assessments
-ensures concepts of Universal Design for Learning
-includes provisions that require local education agencies to provide evidence-based interventions in schools with consistently underperforming subgroups

-requires states in Title I plans to address how they will improve conditions for learning including reducing incidents of bullying and harassment in schools, overuse of discipline practices and reduce the use of aversive behavioral interventions (such as restraints and seclusion).

Please call your representative and ask him/her to vote NO on House Bill 610 (HR 610) introduced by three Republican reps.

Please consider copying and pasting this post (rather than hitting "share" so it isn't limited to the friends we have in common). Thanks for advocating on behalf of our nation's youth and their education.

PUBLIC EDUCATION Made the US Great!

And Republicans are trying to destroy it! 

We've seen what FOR PROFIT does elsewhere -  healthcare managed by Vulture Capitalists SUCKS! 

Betsy DeVos's FOR PROFIT SCHOOLS are FAILURES! 

Don't sacrifice children for Republican Profits! 




THIS IS CRITICAL INFORMATION!!! PLEASE ACT ON THIS IMMEDIATELY!!!

House Bill 610 makes some large changes. Please inform yourselves and act accordingly. The proposed changes to American public education are seismic and potentially devastating--particularly to minorities and children already at risk.


This bill will effectively implement the school voucher system, to be applied to children ages 5-17, and will begin the long-term process of defunding public schools.


In addition, the bill will completely eliminate the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, which is the original legal basis of the nation's modern education system and, as such, has provided equal access for all to education, from K-12.

The 'Every Student Succeeds Act' (ESSA), signed into law by President Obama in 2015, is a big, comprehensive law that underwrites programs for struggling learners, AP classes, ESL classes, classes for minorities including Native Americans, Rural Education, Education for the Homeless, School Safety (e.g., Gun-Free schools), Monitoring and Compliance and Federal Accountability Programs.

In addition to dismantling ESSA, House Bill 610 also abolishes the Nutritional Act of 2012 (No Hungry Kids Act) which provides nutritional standards for school breakfasts and lunches. The bill does not stipulate any protections for special needs (SN) children, nor does it mention IDEA or FAPE.
Please keep in mind all the important protections that the existing law (ESSA) provides for children with disabilities:

ESSA:

-Ensures access to the general education curriculum.

-Ensures access to accommodations on assessments.

-Ensures concepts of Universal Design for Learning

-Includes provisions that require local education agencies to provide evidence-based interventions in schools with consistently underperforming subgroups.

-Requires States covered under Title I plans to address how they will improve conditions for learning, including reducing incidents of bullying and harassment in schools, overuse of discipline practices and reducing the use of aversive behavioral interventions (such as restraints and seclusion).

Please call your representative and ask him/her to vote NO on House Bill 610 (HR 610) introduced by three Republican reps.

PLEASE copy and paste the above.


PLEASE SHARE!