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Yesterday we hosted a postcard signing to Senator Turner et al. A school parent donated the postcard printing. We think over 800 cards were dropped off at the post office, so each legislator on our list will get 100+ yellow postcards addressed and signed by someone in town (including teachers at a couple of schools we were able to get to during the day). We could have gotten more volume out if we weren’t so squeezed between the T-giving holiday and Dec 1 committee date, but we feel good about what we churned out. We did have one local reporter (Stacy McEvoy) come by during our signing.
2. We’re in the process of sending the note below/attachment to our grassroots lists (including NJ parents we know beyond Madison) to encourage e-mails and phone calls.
3. We are e-mailing our District 21 legislators to let them know about our outreach to Education Committee members, and asking for their help in getting the amendments heard/passed.
Also, Board of Education members (Diane and Lisa) were scheduled to meet with Assemblyman Cryan yesterday. I don’t have any word yet on that meeting.
Although I’m the one sending this e-mail, this was a true team effort to accomplish all this in a compressed period of time. And the advice from Lynne and updates via GSCS were extremely helpful to us. We hope we’ve helped make a difference.
Joanne Spigner, Tricia Turvey, Chris Anderson, Mary Ellen Greene
Subject: School budget law - next steps - please read
This is the next chapter in our grassroots efforts to amend S-1701, onerous school budget legislation that will hurt our schools and budget/tax stability. Following Monday’s successful postcard signing with 800+ postcards now in the mail to legislators, we need to follow up with e-mails and phone calls. Others throughout the state are doing the same, since this is an issue where diverse school districts all share the same concerns. There is a Senate Education Committee hearing on Thursday. We’ve learned that the proposed amendments aren’t even on the committee agenda, making it even more important to be heard NOW.
Please send an e-mail and pick up the phone TODAY, before Thursday’s meeting. Here’s the step-by-step guide:
1. E-mail Senator Shirley Turner, head of the Education Committee, and cc the four committee members listed below. A cut-and-paste note is attached. Use as-is or edit as you like. Put your name and address at the bottom.
2. Call Senator Turner (and other committee members if you have the time). Share your concern that no amendment bills are scheduled for the Senate Education Committee hearing this Thursday. You can use messages from the e-mail. If you like, add that fuel and energy costs have soared and that districts need immediate relief, including (1) an increase in allowable surplus to provide flexibility when these kind of unpredictable costs occur, and (2) less restrictions on budget caps and transferring from line items or surplus to pay for unanticipated energy increases.
If you have time to make only two calls, our priority is to first call Senator Turner, then Senator Bryant. The committee roster for phone and e-mail:
- [Dem] Senator Shirley Turner, Education Committee Chair 609 530 3277 senturner@njleg.org
- [Dem] Senator Wayne Bryant 856 234 8080 senbryant@njleg.org.
- [Dem] Senator Nicholas Scutari 908 587 0404 senscutari@njleg.org
- [Rep] Senator Robert Martin 973 984 0922 senmartin@njleg.org
- [Rep] Senator Joe Palaia 732 531 1303 senpalaia@njleg.org
Let us know if you have any questions about S-1701 or the legislative outreach process. You can also learn more at the Garden State Coalition of Schools website http://www.gscschools.org/gsc/S1701%20Information/. Feel free to forward this information to NJ friends, family or colleagues who share your concern about the quality of our public schools.
Chris Anderson texwanson@aol.com
Mary Ellen Greene jammgreene@aol.com
Joanne Spigner jspigner@visionfirst.com
Tricia Turvey peturvey@aol.com
P.S. I’m sure some of you will get this request note multiple times. Apologies for that, but we figure better multiple times than not at all. Please find a few minutes to send an e-mail and a make a phone call or two, especially to Senators Turner and Bryant’s offices.
