We asked our chapters and affiliates to reflect on the results of the November election, especially as they impact education. Here are some of those reports: PENNSYLVANIA: PAA Philadelphia affiliate Parents United leader and PAA founding member Helen Gym shared a special post on the group’s web site, “Why we vote,” which surely helped motivate people to turn out to vote and to turn out of office the anti-public school governor Tom Corbett. Helen suggests we … →
Our latest group of affiliate reports comes from around the nation, from Oregon to Michigan to Florida. While these groups are geographically dispersed, they are tackling many of the same issues, emphasizing the need for like-minded parents to work together across the nation. Oregon Save Our Schools (OSOS) Website: oregonsaveourschools.blogspot.com We are a group of committed community members that want to provide a quality and equitable education for all students in the state of Oregon. We are founded on the … →
Northeastern PAA affiliates have been working locally, statewide and nationally to promote quality public education, focusing on issues that include high-stakes testing, student privacy, democratic governance and equity. Their efforts include an exciting upcoming event: QUEST in Boston is cosponsoring a conference on education reform and human rights, entitled “Rethinking Education Reform: A Human Rights Perspective” at the Northeastern University School of Law on November 6 and 7. Julian Vasquez Heilig will keynote. For more information, please visit the … →
PAA affiliates in North and South Carolina have had a busy year, and are looking forward to new rounds of action and advocacy at local and state levels. Public Schools First NC (PSFNC) Website: publicschoolsfirstnc.org Public Schools First NC is a statewide, nonpartisan organization focused solely on public education. Our mission is to educate and mobilize citizens in support of a public education system that equitably offers a high-quality, well-funded, and diverse education to all students. Since our inception in … →
As the new school year begins, PAA has asked its chapters and affiliates to provide descriptions of the past year’s activities and what they’re planning for this year. We’ll be posting these descriptions a few at a time, starting with our Pennsylvania affiliates, Parents United for Public Education and Yinzercation. Parents United for Public Education Founded in 2006, Parents United for Public Education is a parent-led citywide organization focused on engaging parents with the budget process in order … →
Our second day started out with breakout sessions to discuss how PAA can better support our chapters and affiliates. We came up with a number of great ideas and some volunteers to work on them. The final session began with a presentation on Poverty and Education by PAA Board member Nate Harris. Nate shared some statistics on the issues confronting low-income students and a review of some of the federal programs that are designed to address some of these needs. … →
The Parents Across America 2014 Leadership Conference was an exciting, productive meeting. 20 of PAA’s chapter and affiliate leaders from 13 states all over the U.S. attended, discussed the issues, and offered their ideas for PAA action for the coming year. Early arrivals to the conference were able to spend most of the day Monday meeting with Congressmen and Senators on Capitol Hill, including some of their own representatives and members of the House and Senate education committees. We focused … →
“Homelessness and poverty up close is hard. It smells, actually in my room this year, it takes from the very fiber of a being, it is destructive to those that stand in uselessness looking as well as those suffering it. I’m dealing with a woman and her child suffering terribly now — she should never be alone in this, her faculties are not good enough to deal. She can’t go grow food on some family place, she’s like … →
PAA was delighted to spend an evening with members and friends in Washington DC honoring the amazing work of our co-founder, Leonie Haimson, at the first annual Parent Voice Award dinner. Our hosts at the National Education Association provided a beautiful atrium setting for the dinner. PAA founding member, the legendary Helen Gym, leader of PAA Philadelphia affiliate Parents United for Public Education, emceed the event, where the attendees were welcomed by NEA community outreach specialist Cynthia Kain. Cynthia spoke … →
We know that most of our PAA chapter and affiliate members are not able to get to Washington DC this coming week for our annual leadership conference, so we’re going to try to create some opportunities for you to participate in some of our activities virtually and long-distance. Let’s start with our Capitol Hill Day on Monday, July 28. A number of PAA leaders will be visiting Congress that day, highlighting three priority issues: Reducing high-stakes testing, Strengthening student privacy … →
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