Must Be Present to Win

I have made a number of references in my blogs to articles written by Ross Ramsey of the Texas Tribune.  His article touched on the need for businesses to stay engaged with the legislature, specifically relating to the lobbying by businesses late in the session who were opposed to the LG’s bathroom bill. He continues to be a voice of reason and this headline really landed with me as also addressing issues relating to public education. 

For me, this headline can be a rallying cry for engagement by those whose lives touch and are touched by our public education system.  I’ve written more than one blog discussing the need for educators to actively engage in the voting process, to exercise their power in numbers to affect an outcome in elections that will be more favorable to public education initiatives and, more importantly, the future of the nearly 5.4 million Texas public education students.  Never has it been more important that the effort to create voting cultures in districts and communities succeeds. 

But you must be present to win, i.e., you have to engage and then participate by voting.  I’ve heard several people say to me, “but I don’t know who to vote for”.  There are and will be numerous resources that provide information on candidates.  Some will be partisan but many more will be non-partisan.  Among the latter, I will continue to include Texas Parent PAC, Texans for Public Education and Texas Educators Vote.  Visit any of their web sites to get a sense of what they are doing to promote engagement and to share information regarding candidate platforms.

With the legislative and special sessions now in the past and discussions largely dominated by testing, Hurricane Harvey and other considerations, it’s important to engage now.  We have 18 months until the March, 2019 primaries (16 until early voting).  If we wait until close to the primaries, we will have lost the opportunity to be a part of the discussion and, in many cases, the opportunity to influence the outcome of the next election cycle.  Kids across the state are counting on us to act; let’s be certain that we make education a priority by becoming more engaged and by helping to lead the charge to bring attention to the issues that will impact our students’ ability to succeed.

No, you can’t call it in by just talking about the issues.  You must be present to win in the form of meetings with incumbents and challengers, as well casting a vote for those individuals favorable to, and supportive of, public education.

Policy over Party, part 2

In June, I wrote a blog about my personal shift in perspective from voting for a candidate because of a particular party affiliation with limited regard for where that candidate stood on the issues to one focused on the platform of that candidate; click here to read my blog.  The actions (perhaps inactions is a better word!) of the Senate in the 85^th and special sessions certainly reinforced the need to adopt “policy over party” as a go-forward mindset.

Last week, Ross Ramsey, co-founder and executive editor of the Texas Tribune, published an article titled “Early omens of a very conservative GOP primary”.  If you have not read it, I encourage you to do so by either clicking on the title above or by clicking here.  The bottom line from his standpoint is that, since all statewide office holders (all Republican) have announced plans to seek reelection, the cascade impact of this makes it easier for what he termed as “full throated” conservatives to win election in down-ballot races.  He further states that one of the reasons that this is the case is that these individuals are elected by a “reliable” group of conservative voters, individuals who cast a ballot in most elections.

That’s where the opportunity now opens up for educators and others concerned about the future of public education in the State of Texas.  It’s well documented that many in this pro-public education group have not voted on a consistent basis.  But with very low voter turnout in Texas, initiatives that will get public education supporters to the ballot box may very well sway the outcome of races across the state.  And that is good news for the more than 5.3 million public education students who rely on their elected officials to support them.

While certainly not limited to only two such initiatives, the Texas Educators Vote initiative and a renewed push by superintendents to register eligible high school students can have a dramatic impact on primary day and on Election Day.  Once registered, it’s critical that the push to actually vote becomes a focal point and there are numerous groups focusing on that effort as well.  And that’s where “policy over party” comes into play.

Eligible voters, and especially the public education advocates and educators in the upcoming primary and general elections, need to invest time in understanding the platforms of candidates, regardless of the candidate’s party affiliation.  If we fail to do so or even if we have a preferred candidate but don’t exercise our right to vote, those most impacted are the kids in the classroom.  That’s not fair to them or to the future of our state.  All of us must understand the criticality of upcoming elections and come together as a group to elect those who will make education a priority.  Our students are watching and counting on us.

Time to Vote!

Between the regular session and the special session, it was easy for public education advocates to hit the wall!  I know that I did.  When you hear nothing but criticism (from much of Austin), it’s easy to throw your hands up in the air and resign yourself to the actions of the legislature.  And that’s exactly what many want us to do, led by the Lt. Governor and the chair of the Senate Education Committee.

But that’s the last thing that we all should be doing!  Much has been written and several groups have initiatives underway to address the constant barrage of public education criticism.  In this blog, I’d like to highlight two specific initiatives.

Texans for Public Education, a group founded by Troy Reynolds, (Facebook – texans4publiced; texansforpubliceducation.com; Twitter - @texans4e) has done a very nice job of putting together a scorecard of where each legislator stands on public education.  His is an evolving process and with the support and input of all of us, he is constantly updating the “grades” of each legislator.  He also offers specific commentary about reasons and actions that support the “grade”.

Texas Educators Vote (texaseducatorsvote.com), launched by the Texas Association of Community Schools (web – tacsnet.org; Twitter - @tacsnet) under the leadership of Barry Haenisch and Laura Yeager, was developed as a campaign prior to the last general election to drive increased voter participation by educators … and it worked! Now back and newly refined, Texas Educators Vote is focused not just on getting out the vote, but making sure that educators have access to information that helps them understand which candidates are supportive of public education. 

Texas educators can make a difference at the polls and certainly continue to do so on a daily basis in the classroom.  It’s sad that some in Austin fail to acknowledge educators’ efforts but the next round of primaries and the general election will serve as a great opportunity to change the mindset in Austin.

What all of this boils down to is the need for educators to engage in the election process. Although educators are often criticized and challenged for their efforts, these two outstanding groups have taken the initiative to change the culture in Austin.  They are not alone but they can only do so much.  It’s up to educators and others who support public education to engage and act … now.  It’s time for us to do our homework on who supports public education and do what we can to ensure that those individuals have a seat in Austin, a seat that will make education a priority for the more than 5.3 million Texas public education students.

Words alone will not make a difference … it’s Time to Vote!