Advocating for Change In every corner of Louisiana, we’re with you, fighting for our students. Fighting for our future.
Keep the Promise
When lawmakers make promises, it's our job to hold them accountable to fulfilling their promises. Time and time again, Louisiana legislators, BESE members, and Governor Edwards himself, have said that Louisiana's K-12 public schools are a top priority. In addition to school funding, educator pay is one of the most critical issues set to be debated in the 2020 Legislative Session. It is imperative that lawmakers do what is needed to raise teachers', and all other public school employees', salaries so that educator pay reaches the levels of those in surrounding states. This is a promise that cannot be broken.
The session starts in just a few weeks. It is critical for every person with a vested interest in Louisiana's public schools to put pressure on those individuals involved in the budgeting process — that means state representatives, senators, school board members, and, yes, Governor Edwards.
The LAE, as we always have, will be front and center in urging lawmakers to make the appropriate investments in education to ensure all public school teachers and school support workers are honored for their dedication to our state's future. We will not lose sight of what's most important: coming together to fight for the women and men who work tirelessly to educate and support our children.
Take Action
It's Time to Get it Right, LA!
Students need smaller class sizes, updated text books, and accessible health services. Educators need updated teaching tools, safe classrooms, and better pay. True stories, right?
Well, here's a way to get the money needed to make this possible: Roll back on corporate tax breaks.
Just last year, school districts across Louisiana lost millions of dollars in revenue to a corporate tax break program that allows big businesses to skip out on paying their fair share of property taxes. Learn more about the program by checking out this quick explainer video....
It's no secret that LAE is focusing on raising awareness about the state's Industrial Tax Exemption Program. We're calling for a roll back on these types of tax breaks for multi-million dollar companies because we see this as a feasible solution for adequately funding local school budgets.
In late April, LAE hosted a conversation with members across the state to talk about an issue that has been a hot topic for some time now: education funding. The purpose of the call was to gather feedback from members on how school funding impacts them and their students, and also, to determine the ways members would be willing to help articulate the dire need to prioritize school funding. Here are a few takeaways:
- We asked participants to tell us about funding levels at their schools. 85% said their school was underfunded and felt their colleagues and students were struggling because of that.
- We wanted to get an idea of how educators would prioritize funding if it were available. The top areas where participants said they would invest money were competitive pay and benefits for educators, nursing and counseling services for students, extra-curricular classes, and school safety.
We presented actions for members to take to help raise awareness about the needs of our schools. The following reflects the percentages of members who said YES to taking the suggested actions:
- 86% said they would participate in a school walk-in;
- 74% said they would be willing to speak publicly about the needs of their schools;
- 67% said they'd be willing to share photos showing their students' learning conditions; and
- a whopping 89% said they would a participate in a rally at the Capitol
The most important takeaway from the conversation was the need for members to help amplify these actions at the local level.
WHAT ACTIONS ARE YOU WILLING TO TAKE TO HELP LAE FIGHT FOR ADEQUATE SCHOOL FUNDING? LET US KNOW, HERE.
It’s time to get it right, and in order to do that, Louisiana must focus on making long-term investments in our schools. I hope you agree and are willing to help us amplify this sentiment.
