Getting to Know: Congressional Committees

Committees play an integral role in the function of Congress overall and in the legislative process, certainly. Committee work is where bills are shaped and where members of Congress make decisions about a bill's future in that process. Especially now that Democrats are in the majority in the House for the 116th Congress, we're seeing how that function is changing from the previous one.

The introduction of bills, speeches, and votes are important and a fundamental understanding of committees is crucial for any successful advocate. For monitoring work in education at the federal level, I try to stay abreast of the work of the following committees:

• House Committee on Education & Labor (@HELPCmteDems on twitter)

• House Committee on the Budget (@HouseBudgetDems)

• House Committee on Appropriations (@AppropsDems)

• Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions (no Committee twitter account that I know of)

• Senate Committee on the Budget (@BudgetGOP: Official Twitter account for the (majority) Republican members of the Senate Budget Committee)

• Senate Committee on Appropriations (no Committee twitter account, so far as I know)

If you're on twitter, you may be interested in subscribing to my ED & DC list, as individuals and groups included on it follow the work of the above Committees closely, as well as to provide context for the greater, holistic picture; their work can aid to improve our understanding and advocacy efforts. Are there additional Committees you think I should consider adding to the above? What groups and individuals could be added to the ED & DC list?
- - -
Image credit: View from Senate Park of U.S. Capitol Dome (amid restoration), April 2016

Mass Power Forward Lobby Day

More than 100 members of Mass Power Forward prepped for lobby day

Environmental and Energy Justice advocates were in good company at the Massachusetts State House today for Mass Power Forward's (MPF) lobby day. Focus of the lobby day was threefold:

• Share our vision
• Get co-sponsorships, especially from House Reps
• Show solidarity with Weymouth

You'll recall that the MPF coalition, of which PDM is a part, succeeded in advocating for powerful energy and environmental policy changes last legislative session. All were unanimously supported in the State Senate.

Those bills have been "refreshed" for a second round this legislative session, strengthened by a commitment to environmental justice and against racism.

Leaders of MPF note that many of our communities, especially those with a majority of people of color and low incomes, have had to bear the brunt of decades of fossil fuel pollution and are most at risk from climate change. MPF is urging state legislators to call for energy policy that leads by example to stop fossil fuel subsidies, support local renewable energy resources, keep energy dollars in our communities, create good green jobs, and protect our Commonwealth from climate change and life-threatening pollution.

Messaging MPF's legislative priorities, especially to members of the House, calls for bold, decisive action on:

• Environmental Justice -- including communities impacted by climate change and fossil fuel pollution as participants in crafting new, equitable policy
• 100% Renewable Energy -- set an ambitious goal to equitably reach 100% renewable electricity by 2035 and 100% renewable energy for heating and transportation by 2045
• Equitable Investments and Green Infrastructure -- use mechanisms such as equitable carbon pricing or TCI (Transportation Climate Initiative) to invest today to create the future we want

After the briefing, members dispersed into the State House to meet with House Reps, asking that they co-sponsor these important bills* by Friday, February 1:

1. S.D.1885/H.D.3878; S.D.1824/H.D.3523 -- An Act relative to Environmental Justice; Sen. DiDomenico/Rep.Madaro and Sen. Eldridge/Rep. Dubois & Rep. Miranda
2. S.D.1625S.D.1625/H.D.3092 --  An Act Re-powering Massachusetts with 100% Renewable Energy; Sen. Eldridge/Rep. Decker & Rep. Garballey
3. H.D.2370 -- An Act to Promote Green Infrastructure and Reduce Carbon Emissions; Rep. Benson
4. S.D.1541/H.D.3009 -- An Act to Advance Modern and Sustainable Solutions for Transportation; Sen. Lesser/Rep. Ehrlich

At 1:00, MPF members joined organizers from Fore River Residents Against the Compressor Station
at Governor Baker's office to protest the Weymouth Compressor Station.

Check out #EnergyJusticeNow and #mapoli on twitter, as well as links to MPF and Fore River Residents Against the Compressor Station facebook pages, for videos, pictures, comments, and more.

* As of this posting, House Docket numbers have been assigned but links to bill texts are not yet live on malegislature.gov

Image credit, Mary Ann Stewart

Cross-posted to Progressive Democrats of Massachusetts

Deflected attention

Public education advocates were in good company in the Gardner Auditorium at the State House this past Monday, March 7. The Joint Committee on Education held a hearing on seven bills, including two in response to ballot initiatives (the charter cap lift and repeal of Common Core), one on summer learning, one on mental health education in high schools, and three others. I'd prepared testimony in opposition to the charter cap lift (written and oral).

A number of DESE staff were on hand for most of the hearing. Commissioner Chester gave his testimony in opposition to the Common Core ballot question. Two of my BESE colleagues, James Morton and Ed Doherty were there, too: James to give testimony in support of the summer learning bill, and Ed in opposition to the charter cap bill.

I had thought I would do a bunch of tweeting on the Committee's proceedings, but I lost focus for quite some time due to the compelling BPS student walkout happening on twitter.

I had caught wind of the protest as it was developing over the weekend (twitter), thanks to parents who shared their excitement of their kids taking civic responsibility on their own terms, planning the event in order to speak out about the $50M in proposed cuts to their schools.

The pictures began showing up on my twitter feed, telling the story of students leaving school at about 11:30 AM, some
bringing posters and signs they had made, and meeting at the gazebo on the Common. First there were images from around
the city of students getting ready to make the trek. Then there were hundreds beginning to gather. Then hundreds more. And the kids were streaming up and out of the trains, headed to the gazebo, and soon there were hundreds and hundreds of students there. And then there were a thousand students peacefully assembled on the Common and still the students continued coming up from the trains and it was clear that there were well over a thousand students. Someone tweeted out that there were about 2,000 students. And after that, someone said that there were about 3,500 students.

An exuberance of students on the Common.

Then, they began their procession across the Common, up to the State House and I could barely keep up with the pictures then - and I tried to retweet them all, to no avail. Beacon Street was full of students. A sea of students from the front of the State House, expressing their dissatisfaction with the proposed, devastating cuts to their schools.

I couldn't hear from inside the State House, but apparently there was chanting. Periscopes and short videos were attached to tweets. Councillor Tito Jackson was being interviewed out in front. He said he supported the students. He said that the recent approval by the BESE to expand charter seats in Boston would add nearly $20M more to the BPS shortfall. I was riveted. It was a powerful display of youthful concern and civic engagement.

Eventually, I had to turn my full attention to the hearing when it was time to give my testimony. I spoke as part of a panel with Lisa Guisbond, Executive Director of Citizen's for Public Schools, and Kevin Murray, Executive Director of the Program for Human Rights and the Global Economy at Northeastern University's School of Law (their November 2014 case study of Massachusetts charter schools is a must read). Lisa noted new waitlist data that CPS had analyzed and Kevin cited an article that related charter school conditions reminiscent of the subprime mortgage crisis. (Parent Imperfect blogged about the article).

Public ed hearings are a great opportunity to see many fellow/sister advocates, friendships forged in the fight for strong public schools for all kids, and to make new face to face connections. It was great to finally meet Heshan and to briefly catch up with Tito. Barbara, Paul, Angela, Tom, Paul, Phyllis - frequently a presence at the State House when the the Joint Committee is hearing testimony. Great seeing them. And I always enjoy hanging out and catching up with Tracy and Margaret whenever possible. 

My testimony didn't feel complete - there's just so much to say about charters and so little time! So, I gave a short testimony on Monday, and sent a long written one to the Committee today.

I left the hearing a bit before 4:00; Tracy tweeted out that the hearing adjourned at about 5:00. If you want to read a more coherent account of the hearing, you'll want to read from her blog.

Public Hearing on the Fair Share Constitutional Amendment

Proud to be one of the ten original signers of this initiative petition

The Joint Committee on Revenue meets at 10:30 AM today for a public hearing on the Fair Share Constitutional Amendment (H3933) - room B-1 at the State House. I'll be providing one minute of testimony as part of an education panel. Here are my thoughts:

Honorable Co-Chairs and Members of the Committee:

Thank you for the opportunity to testify in support of the Fair Share Constitutional Amendment. I’m Mary Ann Stewart, from Lexington, parent representative on the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE), speaking for myself, not for the Board.

I’ve been deeply involved in education from a number of local, statewide, and national perspectives. Students need a well-rounded education that’s based on a rich and varied curriculum that includes music, art, and athletics - but, many of these programs were eliminated or severely eroded in many communities during the recession years.

To provide a sound future for our children and our Commonwealth, we must ensure that all children get a great education, including those who face the greatest challenges. We need to invest more in foundation funding for school districts, early childhood education, extended day & wrap-around services, and post-secondary education.

Improving the quality of the education our children receive requires up-front investments for long term pay-offs to individual students, society, and to the workforce. Determining how to raise revenue for these long term investments is a critical challenge. We can make those investments by asking our highest income residents, who, as you know, currently pay less of their income in state and local taxes than the rest of us, to pay a little more on their income over $1 million.

Thank you for your consideration.

Schools that Work

When we think of being involved parents* at school, what comes to mind? Is it to volunteer in the classroom? Fundraise for needed items? Attend a program, event, or meeting?

These are only part of what it means to be a modern, engaged parent today. Parents are working, juggling family, extra-curricular activities, and other commitments. Certainly, our students and schools win when parents are meaningfully involved in classrooms and schools. And, while it's true that an engaged parent may be a school volunteer:

• he may also be interested in learning how school events actually link to learning, so that he may better support learning at home;

• or, she may want to participate in decision-making opportunities in the school or in the district;

• or some may wish to advocate not only for their child and her classroom, but for all of the children in the school, city, or town, by speaking out on school-wide issues before local, state, and/or national elected representatives and policymakers.

Between government mandates, increasing class sizes, and shrinking budgets, public schools today are challenged to provide every child with opportunities to meet their educational needs.

Our communities, along with the Commonwealth, and the federal government as a critical third partner, have a shared responsibility for maintaining public schools and ensuring that all children have access to a high-quality public education.

The parent partnership extends beyond the school walls and includes our elected representatives at the local, state, and national levels. We must let them know how they can make a difference for our children by showing up to advocate for resources.

Across Massachusetts, schools lack resources for critical programs they need to close gaps and overcome barriers to learning that threaten the quality of education for every child - and leave our most vulnerable children behind.

To keep the promise of public education alive is to renew our partnership with policymakers and to promote a more fruitful collaboration on behalf of every child in every public school in every city and Town.

I'm dedicated to building family, community, and statewide partnerships that work for our schools and children.

Yes - family engagement is about partnering with our child's teacher and school -- and, yes, it's also about packing healthy lunches for them, monitoring their screen time, and talking with them about their goals and passions.

But, that's not the whole picture.

We all need to work together - beyond the classroom and school - to help our schools obtain the resources they need to fulfill the promise that public education holds for every child.

Advocacy is like an ever-flowing river - one that you may step into at any place, at any time. And whether you choose to dip your toe in at the edge of the shore, or wade all the way into the deep - your presence has changed the course.

Now is the time. We must partner together because these are our children, our schools, our future and they deserve no less.
- - -
* Throughout this post, "parent" refers to any adult who serves a care-giving role in a child's life.

Time to Bring Public Policy and Social Media Together for Progress

I've had a great summer, much of it spent off the grid unplugged from email, tapping into social media for fun. It's been great connecting on a more personal level with family and friends in real time talking, laughing, crying, sharing, hugging.

Thinking back to when Facebook arrived on the scene in February 2004: I was slow to adopt. I signed up eventually and connected to family and local friends. When Twitter followed in March 2006, I decided I was not going to try to keep up with yet another platform. Not so for businesses, corporations, institutions, and the like. Twitter, YouTube, and Facebook opened up a whole new world of marketing strategy for them.

"We don't have a choice on whether we DO social media, the question is how well we DO it." ~ Erik Qualman

After being accepted in 2011 into a 6-month program for women interested in pursuing political office, I was introduced to Twitter and quickly grew to enjoy it. I set myself up on LinkedIn later that same year and leaned into the idea of using Facebook as a way to connect with folks on a range of issues, too. This video gives a snapshot of social media at the time:



Gone are the questions asking if social media is here to stay. Clearly they are, though how kids and adults are using social media today has changed dramatically.

Consider a PEW study published earlier this year that provides an overview on American teens and their use of technology and social media. One finding showed that 92% of teens were online everyday, with 24% online "almost constantly".

So much has changed - and is changing - across our media-saturated landscape. Schools and individual teachers are working to bring media literacy to students, but media literacy is not broadly implemented in our public schools and media literacy is rarely part of the public debate on education. Still, more and more politicians and policymakers are getting on twitter and facebook to connect to their stakeholders and constituents.

I'm a member of the national advisory council for Media Literacy Now. We want our elected representatives and policymakers to engage with us on social media. As more and more elected people are engaging stakeholders and constituents through Twitter and Facebook, we can connect with them in meaningful ways to impact awareness of the urgent need for media literacy education and other key public policy issues of our time.

* * *
Posts, Podcasts, tweets

• Educational Software Gets Attention from State Politicians
• ISTE: Standardized curriculum for teaching tech skills
• 9 things we learned about phones from a teenager
• Growing up Digital: 3 truths for the adults
• A Parent's Guide to All that "EdTech" in Your Kid's Classroom

Should apps be part of a library’s story time? Ask @mediatrician: http://t.co/qpvRT2r27a #BackToSchool

— CtrMediaChildHealth (@cmch_boston) September 2, 2015

Tips for an online age: What not to share http://t.co/JYnTEtDlso @MBrodeur via @BostonGlobe

— MediaLiteracyNow.org (@MediaLitNow) September 1, 2015

---
Addendum: cross-posted September 9 on Media Literacy Now blog

Intro to What I Learned at #PTcamp

Sometimes we forget. We don't mean to, but we forget that our children are whole children who come to and from school from families and communities.

But what if we didn't forget? And what if we engaged parents as partners, allies, and advocates in children's education at home and at school?

Because more than 40 years of research shows that when families are engaged in their child's learning, that child does better. And this holds true regardless of a parent's level of education, country of origin, or socio-economic status.

So, why do so many schools struggle to engage families? And does it really matter how family-friendly your schools are?

These were some of the questions I had in mind this summer when I participated in #PTcamp: a free and open, virtual bookchat spanning 10 time zones and involving more than 100 educators and parents. Together we read Beyond the Bake Sale: the essential guide to family-school partnerships. Each week we read a couple of chapters, then using some digital tools (including blogs, Twitter, Voxer, and ApprenNet), we engaged, reflected, challenged, and provoked each other's thinking - for learning.

Bake Sale not only connected all of us globally, it got us thinking about the best ways to authentically engage families for student success. By placing family engagement at the heart of school partnerships, the authors promote these 4 Core Beliefs:

1. All parents have dreams for their children and want the best for them;
2. All parents have the capacity for supporting their children's learning;
3. Parents and schools should be equal partners;
4. Responsibility for building these partnerships rests primarily with school staff, especially school leaders.

Then, the authors point the way through an analysis of four partnership models, using five essential metrics by which to gauge how well schools:

• Build Relationships
• Link to Learning
• Address Differences
• Support Advocacy
• and Share Power

My next blog posts will outline the four partnership models discussed in the book - I am so curious to know what will look familiar to you!

Raise Up MA - Update!

RaiseUpMA advocates
at the Tuesday Farmer's
Market, Lexington

For the past two months I've been part of the Raise Up Massachusetts coalition working to gather signatures across Massachusetts for a ballot initiative that would see two questions added to the statewide ballot next November (see previous Posts: Raise Up Massachusetts; PDM). These two important initiatives would index the minimum wage and require employers to provide earned sick time to their employees.

The coalition has been successful! We succeeded in our signature drive - - gathering more than a quarter-million signatures, far surpassing our most ambitious targets. And, PDM has substantially exceeded its own ambitious goals. I was one of many familiar faces at the Farmer's Market each Tuesday from mid-September through the end of October and at several Town events. I also made a personal commitment to knock doors in my precinct - and I'm pleased to say that I successfully gathered 500+ signatures for my efforts.

The impact of Raise Up's statewide campaign has led the state Senate's leadership to advance a minimum wage measure that would meet many of the campaign's goals.

I stand with PDM and statewide activists who await this initiative moving forward, in both legislative and electoral settings, to see these important progressive reforms put into law.

Will Congress Expand Early Education?

Earlier this year, President Obama proposed a new partnership with states that would provide universal, high-quality, full-day preschool for 4-year olds from low- and moderate-income families. Last week, Secretary Arne Duncan joined members of Congress, business and military leaders, law enforcement officials, educators, and parents to voice support for a landmark early learning bill.

Introduced by Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.), and Rep. Richard Hanna (R-NY), the Strong Start for America's Children Act would improve and expand high-quality early learning opportunities for children from birth to age five.

If signed into law, the new bill will accelerate the progress that states already are making to implement high-quality preschool programs and ensure that these programs are accessible to children who need them the most.



Early nurturing, nutrition, and stimulation increase a child's ability to learn and thrive over a lifetime. Read the Bill Summary of the Committee on Education & the Workforce and contact your Congressional Representative to voice your support.

Media Literacy Education

Advocates in support of the Media Literacy Bill (S.213) were in good company in Room A-1 of the State House on the morning of October 31st. Below is the testimony of Christina Brown on behalf of the Massachusetts PTA, followed by my testimony on behalf of the MASC Legislative Committee.

My name is Christina Brown; I am a parent, educator, and a proud member of the Massachusetts Parent TeacherAssociation, an affiliate of National PTA, the oldest and largest volunteer child advocacy association in the country, here to speak on behalf of the needs of families, parents, and children.  

Thank you for the opportunity to testify before you today on the critical issue facing children in the 21^st Century, media literacy. Right now there are children all over the Commonwealth who have in their hands, in their lockers, and in their backpacks devices that connect them to the greatest collection of marketing, images, information, videos, social media, and personal data collection tools in the history of our species. This portable collection of media grows exponentially every day and our digital natives naively assume that knowing how to manipulate the functions of these devices means they understand and can make wise decisions about the content that pours out in torrents. 

As a parent of a second-grader, I know my days of having control over the media that my child has access to are limited.  My ban on his using electronic devices that connect him to this collection of media could end any moment as there is no place a child can go where there are not smart phones and tablets. I know full well that this media is as valuable as it is his dangerous to his development and socialization. I also know there are marketers doing brain research at this moment to understand how to keep him engaged and on their screen. I know that he hears my voice in his head asking him to think critically, ask himself what is being sold to him, is this true, what is the evidence for the veracity of the claim that comes with deceptively attractive graphics and colors? But I know parents can't do this alone.

This bill asks that in addition to their families' voices, children in the Commonwealth also hear the voices of their well-trained and skilled teachers who are provided with resources to support the development of media literacy in our children. Teachers can join parents on the frontline and add to the knowledge and volume of critical questions children ask themselves as they use new technology and navigate our 21^st Century world. In the same way MA teachers will for thirteen years support children's development as literate individual who are prepared for college and career as readers, writers, speakers, and listeners as detailed in the MA Frameworks, there is a desperate need for this comprehensive literacy instruction to fully include media literacy to support students in navigating a and increasingly complex media landscape.

The Mass PTA Position on Consumerism dedicates us to:

I. support efforts to protect children from exploitive marketing through advocacy, education, and collaboration; and

II. To support, expand, and improve efforts to inform parents on media and technology safety issues.

The Mass PTA Position on Technology in Schools dedicates us to:

I. Support, expand, and improve efforts that increase knowledge and skills for students to access, analyze, evaluate, navigate, and communicate a variety of media messages from the internet and other media sources.

The Mass PTA Position on Education of the Whole Child dedicates us to:

I. Support, expand and improve resources to ensure schools give every child access to a rich array of subjects and address children's basic emotional and physical needs.

II. Support, expand, and improve resources to ensure children are healthy, engaged, supported, challenged, and safe.

Media education is about making sure that students are prepared to think critically and ask the right questions throughout the 21^st Century and into the 22^nd Century. And it is essential, now more than ever that we give them skills they need for the lifetime that extends well-beyond their K-12 years. Thank you.

Christina Brown,

Massachusetts PTA

405 Waltham Street, #147

Lexington MA 02421

617/861-7910

* * *

Honorable Co-Chairs, members of the Committee, thank you for the opportunity to testify on the importance of Media Literacy in Education. I speak as a school committee member and member of the Massachusetts Association of School Committee’s Legislative Committee.

Members of locally elected school committees are very sensitive to public policy overload, education legislation, or any legislation that would mandate course curriculum content. At a meeting of the MASC Legislative Committee last Thursday night, members thoughtfully considered, then voted unanimously to support S.213 for the following reasons:

• The Bill is not written as a mandate. Media literacy is pedagogy, a method of teaching, not a subject area. One can incorporate media literacy into any subject. So, it’s not an add-on, but rather a powerful way to teach a subject that is relevant and engaging to kids who live in a powerful 24/7 media environment.
• The MTA endorses S.213 and has been on board as long as the Massachusetts PTA.
• It’s a matter of equity. Some districts already recognize that media literacy is written into the Common Core State Standards and those districts are moving forward to integrate media analysis; students risk falling behind schools and districts that are doing a better job preparing their students for work and life.
• This Bill calls upon the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education to assist districts with implementing comprehensive media literacy education for the purpose of developing stronger critical analysis skills and independent thinking skills; these skills are in tune with curriculum frameworks aligned to Common Core State Standards and necessary for navigating our media-saturated world.

Today, literacy means media literacy. When you consider that nearly 6 trillion ads are displayed online each year[1], 400 million tweets are sent daily[2], and 4.75 billion pieces of content are shared on Facebook every day[3], it’s vital that students question and understand media’s commercial and political messages –– and to create their own messages and responses to 24/7 media. Thank you.

Mary Ann Stewart

Lexington MA 02420

---

[1] U.S. Digital Future in Focus 2013, www.comScore.com

[2] http://articles.washingtonpost.com/2013-03-21/business/37889387_1_tweets-jack-dorsey-twitter, by Hayley Tsukayama, March 21, 2013

[3]https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10151908376716729&set=a.10151908376636729.1073741825.20531316728&type=3&theater

Public Hearing on Media Literacy Bill

State House, Boston

I spent the better part of Halloween morning at the Massachusetts State House, specifically in Hearing Room A-1, for a Public Hearing convened by the Joint Committee on Education. The hearing was dedicated to proposed bills on curriculum in K-12 public schools, that included teaching of genocide, Civics education, and more. It was standing room only. Seats were filled and walls lined with staff, press, teachers, students, and advocates in attendance to hear testimony in support of a range of bills that would impact K-12 curriculum in public schools. I was there to testify in support of the Media Literacy Bill (S.213/H.472) on behalf of the MASC Legislative Committee.

Advocates speak in support
of S.213 before the Joint
Committee on Education

Room A-1

Bill S.213 is unique in that it is not written as a mandate for teachers or districts to teach a particular subject. Rather, Media Literacy is a methodology, a pedagogy, a way of teaching that incorporates strategies for critical analysis in a way that is relevant and engaging to kids. Teachers recognize the need for media literacy - they see the very real effects of too much media, unhealthy media, and lack of critical analysis. Many teachers are using media literacy across many content areas already and the Massachusetts Teacher's Association endorses this bill; they have been on board as long as the Massachusetts PTA. Some school systems recognize that media literacy is written into the Common Core standards and those districts are moving forward to incorporate it throughout all content areas. Those who are not risk falling behind the schools that are doing a better job preparing their students for work and life in the 21st century.

Raise Up Massachusetts

The Raise Up Massachusetts ballot initiative would see two questions added to the General Election Ballot in November 2014. Voters would be asked to approve an increase to the minimum wage and to guarantee paid sick time for employers with eleven or more employees working a minimum of 30 hours each week. The effort of gathering the required 70,000 signatures is engaging activists all across the Commonwealth.

If successful, we would see the minimum wage increased from $8.00 per hour to $10.50 per hour, phased in over two years and indexed to the inflation rate after January 1, 2016. Paid sick leave would be guaranteed for employees working in a business with eleven or more employees working 30 hours or more per week; each employee would receive one hour of sick leave for each 30 hours worked, up to 40 hours of paid sick time in a calendar year. For employees in a business with fewer than 11 employees, employers would be asked to honor the time each employee accrued.

The first step in the ballot initiative process was achieved this past August and signature papers became available in mid-September. The number of signatures required for this ballot initiative to move forward is about 70,000 certified signatures - - and to ensure that we will have sufficient number of signatures for certification we are aiming for a collection of about 100,000 signatures. This effort is an opportunity to strengthen organizations and a statewide movement for economic justice!

We are organized in Lexington and have committed to getting about 2,000 signatures and of that, I have agreed to help gather at least 1,000 signatures. For the past three weeks, I have been knocking doors in my precinct (P1) and have been present at several events held in Town, and been staked out at the Tuesday afternoon Farmer's Market. It's a great feeling to be out in these glorious fall days, working to improve pay and working benefits for folks. Most of the people I talk with support the initiative.

I have posted previously on the impact of low-wage work on families. If we are successful in getting the certified signatures, we qualify putting the questions to voters in November of 2014. If the referendum passes, we win a raise and new benefits for over one million workers in Massachusetts, and push states around the country to follow our lead. This is an opportunity to make a real difference in the lives of low-income workers in our Commonwealth!

MassPartners for Public Schools

Seven years ago I joined the Board of Directors of MassPartners for Public Schools, a coalition of the statewide parent, teacher, school committee, principal, and superintendent associations in Massachusetts. It was founded in 1999 with the coalition's associations pledging

An Army of Advocates

Members of Mass PTA in DC, March 2013

Even before the financial crisis of 2008, many of our children were attending inadequately funded and over-crowded schools. Silent Auctions, Spring Fairs, and the like, are great community-building events that also raise money to shore up some budget shortfalls, but they can only go so far.

Massachusetts Kids Count Blog

The Kids Count Blog is a group blog about the well-being of children in Massachusetts. A wide range of issues affecting children are covered: from education and child care to juvenile justice and health. 

Many advocates and advocacy organizations were invited to guest post all week (June 17-21, 2013) as the Commonwealth marked the twentieth anniversary of the landmark Massachusetts Education Reform Act (signed into law on June 18, 1993). My post appeared on June 20, 2013 - click on the following link to read it: MERA::Reality Check.