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Over the last several years, we have been showing what is wrong with vouchers, corporate tax credit scholarships, expansion of charter schools, the continued underfunding of our schools and other bad education policy that is being foisted on Kansas by ALEC and others who do not fully support public education. Now we need you. The legislators in Topeka are there to represent us and our children, but they may not know what we want unless we tell them. They have been hearing from the vocal minority and the “free market” lobby. Now they need to hear from you....

Call to Action: The ALEC charter bill from last year is being heard in the Senate Education Committee Friday at 1:30 in Room 112-N. Please contact committee members and urge them to vote NO on Senate Bill 196. Here is the committee email list: Steve.Abrams@senate.ks.gov, Tom.Arpke@senate.ks.gov, Anthony.Hensley@senate.ks.gov,Dan.Kerschen@senate.ks.gov, Jeff.Melcher@senate.ks.gov, Ralph.Ostmeyer@senate.ks.gov, Pat.Pettey@senate.ks.gov, Dennis.Pyle@senate.ks.gov, Vicki.Schmidt@senate.ks.gov, Caryn.Tyson@senate.ks.gov, Kay.Wolf@senate.ks.gov. Here is the Kansas bill: http://www.kslegislature.org/li/b2013_14/measures/documents/sb196_00_0000.pdf. Kansas already allows charter schools. This bill represents an attempt to create a new system for a rapid expansion of charter schools in Kansas, which has been attempted in other states. We have seen the results from those states,...

Call to Action: Please contact members of the House Elections Committee before Monday to urge them to vote No on HB 2227 which would move school board elections from April to November. We should not hold these elections when their issues will get lost in a sea of partisan races; we should not have school board members taking office in the middle of the school year; and we should avoid politicizing school board elections. A hearing is being held Monday afternoon. HB 2227 | Bills and Resolutions | Kansas State Legislature www.kslegislature.org...

Friday, February 7, 2014: Become an Advocate for Public Education! On behalf of the Basehor-Linwood Board of Education, as well as teachers and staff, we are asking for your help in advocating for Kansas public schools. It is not news to any of us, I would guess, that budget cuts in Kansas public schools have taken place over the last few years. School districts across the state have made cuts to administrative and teaching staff, and with that comes increased classroom size. Districts have had to raise bus fees, raise full-day kindergarten fees and several smaller districts have...