Action Opportunities!
If you've looked at the School Report Card and are wondering what you can do to help, you're on the right page.
"Spread the Word!" Awareness Campaign September 14-18!
Throughout the week following the launch of the Report Cards on Washington's Middle and High Schools 2009, we're pushing a major distribution effort all across the state. Help us get objective, understandable information into the hands of the people who have the most invested in public schools: the public.
We need your help!
Whether or not you have school-age kids, public education belongs to you. The first step to reclaiming it is giving the public trustworthy information on how their local schools are doing.
The Evergreen Freedom Foundation will be mailing a packet of flyers to citizens across the state. These volunteers are encouraged to post them in their communities throughout the week of September 14-18. We need you to volunteer today!
Where?
We need you to post School Report Card Flyers in schools, libraries, community centers, coffee shops, chambers of commerce, community bulletin boards, county fairs, or above the office water cooler.
Who's the audience?
When we're talking about public education, our audience has got to be the public. To narrow it down a bit, though, we're targeting people who have the most invested in public education and/or who are in the best positions to affect change:
1. Parents
2. Policymakers
3. Educators/Administrators
4. The general public
The mission of public education belongs to everyone. Take ownership and be part of the solution. Join the "Spread the Word" Campaign today!
Beyond the "Spread the Word!" Campaign
The need for good information on public school performance never stops, and we need volunteers who can donate their time beyond our September 14-18 campaign. The Freedom Foundation will gladly supply flyers for distribution upon request. Click below to contact them.
Volunteer today by emailing CAN@effwa.org!
What else can I do?
Attend school board meetings
As a parent or community member, there's no better way to work for quality education than getting involved on the local level. Going to school board meetings will help you stay informed and hold your elected officials responsible for working toward quality education in your community.
The Freedom Foundation can equip you with solid information and some sample questions to help you get started.
Meet with your legislator
Legislators answer to voters; it's that simple. This being the case, as voters we have a lot more leverage than we think. By sitting down and having a respectful conversation with your legislator or his/her staff member, you are engaging in the political process, exercising your leverage as a voter, and championing your district's students.
Volunteer at your school
Your involvement in your local school could be the catalyst to change a student's life. Never underestimate the impact a volunteer might have on a child or an entire school.
Find success and replicate it!
Use the comparison tool at www.ReportCardWA.com to identify schools that are succeeding with the same challenges your school faces. Often good schools fly under the radar. Contact them, find out what they are doing differently, and share this information with your local teachers and school administrators. (Check back for a list of schools to keep an eye on)
Host a showing of Flunked
The Freedom Foundation's award-winning documentary is just the thing for inspiring a community not to take "no" for an answer when it comes to quality education. You can host a showing in your home, library, community center, or even the local theatre. For audiences of 40 or more, a member of the film-making crew will be glad to make an appearance and conduct a Q&A session after the movie.
What's the goal in all this?
Simply put: good public education. But there's nothing simple about accomplishing it.
To achieve this goal, we must:
1. Offer parents the most reliable and readable information on how their schools are doing, empowering them to make the best decisions for their kids;
2. Inspire the public to reclaim owndership of public education;
3. Encourage voters to apply pressure to their elected officials to deregulate public education and open doors to a variety of public schooling options that will actually meet student needs;
4. Hold failing schools accountable to improving
5. Challenge schools to look to those that are outperforming them and search for ways to replicate success.
Get the facts. Be part of the solution. Reclaim the mission of public education.