IT’S TIME TO INCREASE SCHOOL FUNDING & EDUCATOR PAY: WHAT TO EXPECT IN THE 2019 LEGISLATIVE SESSION
By: LAE Legislative & Political Director Shane Riddle
From back-home meetings with lawmakers to school board races this past Fall, LAE leaders are determined to bring serious conversations on educator pay to the forefront before the beginning of the 2019 Legislative Session. As we approach this year’s session, it’s important to highlight some of the great accomplishments the association has experienced over the past year. Together, LAE members were instrumental in working with Governor Edwards and lawmakers to establish a long-term solution to the fiscal crisis and sustain sources of revenue for public education, health care, TOPS, higher education, and other public services. During a third special session, state representatives and senators agreed to a compromise by passing a measure to restructure a temporary sales tax to help stabilize the budget in a responsible way. Additionally, the measure rolledback on some corporate tax breaks and took advantage of dollars received from an oil spill settlement. LAE members played a major role in this success by staying in constant communication with lawmakers in order to express the most pressing needs of Louisiana’s public schools. Many education supporters came to the state capitol in person to put pressure on their legislators to fix the budget, letting them know that something had to be done to avoid crippling cuts to some of our state’s most crucial services.
Looking ahead to the 2019 session (set to begin on April 8), it will be crucial for lawmakers to pass a responsible operating budget for the coming year. To prepare for this, LAE is working diligently to educate lawmakers on the importance of increasing school funding that will ultimately pave the way for sustainable pay increases for all school employees in the state of Louisiana.
Most are aware that it’s been more than a decade since Louisiana teachers received a sustained increase in salary, but did you know it’s been more than 15 years since school support staff saw increases? Each year, fewer people are entering the teaching profession in Louisiana primarily due to high-stakes testing and low pay – a trend that must be reversed. Recruiting (and retaining) the best and the brightest to work in our schools for our students is an investment we can’t afford to overlook. To make such an investment means paying teachers a salary that meets (or exceeds) teacher pay in surrounding states so that we don’t lose these professionals to nearby states. And just as important, it means paying paraprofessionals, custodians, school bus operators, food service workers, and all other school support professionals appropriately so they can make a respectable living.
Over the past several years, LAE leaders, lobbyists, and member activists have been extremely successful in developing solid, bipartisan relationships with members of both parties in both chambers of the Louisiana legislature. We must continue to nurture these relationships - in addition to establishing new ones - with legislative leaders who truly stand up to help us promote solid and responsible solutions to education funding, educator pay, and restoring the level of respect to the profession that is so rightfully deserved. In our hands, we hold the power to create positive change in the educational environments of all K-12 public school students. We must focus on strengthening our organization by being the bold voice of the Louisiana educator. Please make it a top priority this year to stay in contact with your lawmakers by visiting with them (faceto-face while they’re home from the session), calling them on the phone, and writing them letters echoing LAE’s sentiments.
We have the power to do this (and a whole lot more) in the upcoming session. Please keep an eye out for alerts on all of LAE’s legislative initiatives, and be sure to head to www.redforedla.org to stay updated on actions you can take TODAY to help us in our preparation for the beginning of this year’s annual legislative gathering.
FROM THE PRESIDENT'S DESK
Debbie Meaux, President
The new year is here and LAE is looking forward to an action-packed first six months! I hope you are ready to join us as we gear up to tackle some crucial issues this legislative season.
We all know the changes we’d like to see, especially when it comes to school employee pay. These changes start with securing the funding our school districts so desperately need to adequately fund school budgets. This is exactly what LAE is working to accomplish. Together, alongside education stakeholder groups the Louisiana Association of Principals (LAP), the Louisiana Association of School Superintendents (LASS), the LFT, and the Louisiana School Boards’ Association (LSBA) we are working to spread the message surrounding the importance of making long-term financial investments in Louisiana’s public schools. Beginning in February and running through the first week of April, this education stakeholder coalition will host discussions across Louisiana to bring pressing issues to the forefront. The goal is to get the public to understand the dire need to hold lawmakers accountable during the 2019 Legislative Session so they 1.) approve appropriate funding measures for our public school systems; 2.) prioritize securing a mechanism to fund school employee pay increases; and 3.) improve the working conditions in our schools so the highest quality professionals are recruited and retained to educate our students. Area lawmakers will be invited to attend and engage with educators, parents, and members of the general public. Please make plans to attend the forum closest to you so you can be a part of the conversation. (*See the Save The Date information provided in this message.) We’ll keep you posted on specific event venues as we confirm them.
Across the nation, educators (certified and uncertified) are rising up and facing the powers-that-be, head on. Most recently, the United Teachers of Los Angeles (UTLA) initiated and settled a walk-out to protest unjust practices in the schools. As the second largest school district in the United States with some of the nation’s poorest and neediest students, educators working in Los Angeles’ poverty-stricken areas are under-resourced and overworked. The district was neglecting to appropriately fund schools resulting in classrooms housing nearly 40 or more students. Schools there are in desperate need of librarians, counselors, nurses, and more paraprofessionals - all of which is causing excess stress and resource deficits that impact the quality of education for students. Sound familiar?
Here in Louisiana, it is my intention (and the mission of our great association) to fight for an appropriate and just resolution to Louisiana’s school funding problems, but I need your voice echoing mine. Here’s how you can help...
Join me in talking with your lawmakers. Share your personal experiences with the lack of funding and the negative impacts it has on your students. The lack of respect for educators is driving talented and devoted individuals away from the profession. We must revive public pride and respect for our work. What we do to address this problem is so important and an essential ingredient to improving the future of our state.
Make a commitment to attend the previously mentioned community forums taking place this spring. We need your voice in the room to echo our message to lawmakers. Now is our chance to let them know how dire the financial situations are in our schools. If we want pay increases this year, we must work to educate our policymakers on the genuine needs of our colleagues, and more importantly, the needs of our students.
There’s one more thing. The future of all these initiatives (not to mention the wellbeing of the association) lies in the hands of those who lead. LAE Leadership Elections will take place in March. Please be on the lookout for an email with instructions to vote. All candidates are listed within this issue. LAE is a well-respected voice in the education community at the state and national levels. You can have a hand in continuing this reputation by voting in these important elections. Your vote will determine the individuals who serve as officers of the association and also as representatives of the LAE at the NEA Representative Assembly. The individuals elected will steer the organization into the future. Remember to cast your vote online between March 10th and March 29th.
I know that life is a constant to-do list, but we must find time to do all that we can to make the world take notice of our needs – which are ultimately the needs of our students. Do you really want better pay? More resources and better working conditions? Appropriately prepared colleagues? Professional respect? If so, let’s make it happen! This is our year - the year of the educator. I look forward to seeing new faces working on our campaigns and along with those new faces will come new success. Thank you for all that you do. You are truly appreciated, not just as member of this association, but for all you do to contribute to the success of Louisiana’s students.
In Solidarity,
Debbie Meaux
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