Monday, April 25, 2011

An Open Letter to Californians. To All Americans.


There occur, in times of great transition, events which necessitate the passing of a baton, from those who have endeavored to carry it with the utmost pride and courage, to others of us who may not be ready to, or want to receive it.  Now is such a time.  It is April of the year 2011, and the walls of American education have been torn down, brick by brick, plank by plank, and child by child.

With the erection of the walls of the first tiny schoolhouse in this country, raised with it were hopes and expectations for our children, our communities, our states, and this country.  Prior to this monumental moment, education had been available only to a relative handful of the most privileged.  Out of this handful came many who remain today in our consciousness, in the pages of our history books, and embedded in the fabric of our culture.  And in the time that followed, as schoolhouses sprouted up across the plains, our collective consciousness expanded exponentially, creating a culture of understanding, intelligence, and innovation.

Today, in a country built by these very souls, powered by these very minds, education is dismissed as a luxury, and teachers treated as single-minded opportunists.  Local and federal municipalities expunge education dollars from budgets without the slightest hesitation, creating irrelevant and personal justifications even as the line items vanish.  Citizens ignore initiatives created with the sole intention of providing needed funding for the continued education of our children, even as they embrace bonds to build sports stadiums, entire communities giddy with the excitement of a small child on Christmas morning.  Meanwhile, it is expected that education will continue as if nothing has occurred, as teachers are dismissed or stripped of their rights taken without deliberation or rational thought, schools are closed, programs are cut, and class sizes are increased.

We have spoken out, and raised our voices in unison.  Our screams have gone unheeded.  Maybe we did not scream loudly enough.  Maybe they chose to ignore us.  We cannot know.  Nor can we go back, start over, and try again.  We have only one choice, and that is to move forward.

And so I ask you, as human beings and as members of this national and global community, to look back over your shoulder, reach out, and take the baton.  Take it from those who have long carried it, and run with compassion and purpose.  WE are the last remaining hope for salvaging education in this country.  Whether you have a child in school today is of no consequence.  This country and the citizens contained within are our collective responsibility.  WE are OUR responsibility.

There is no miracle on the horizon.  The sweat of those who have tried dampens the brows of us all.  Our collective limbs tremble with exhaustion from the effort already expended by the courageous.  It is time for us all, in the immortal words of an educator, to stand and deliver.  Or stand and watch as the final dismantling takes place.

Do not look back, ask why, or seek to undo.  The past cannot be undone.  Look forward instead.  Ask what CAN be done.  Seek solutions.  Be courageous.  Look where no one has looked before.  Trust yourselves, your instincts, and your love for your communities.  Get involved!  Join the PTA.  Send letters to your local politicians.  Talk to your communities.  Engage your local businesses.  Offer to help your local schools -  ASK them what you can do.  EVERYONE has something to offer, from open hearts and creative minds, to strong arms and legs, to a wadded up $5 bill stuck at the bottom of a long forgotten coat pocket.

Create the future. Do it now.  For, if not us, then who?  And if not today, then when?

Thursday, February 17, 2011

My Letter to the Superintendent

Dear Superintendent Carrizosa.


I am a mom, a PTA leader, a community member, a BAFA volunteer and committee member, and a Learning professional. My family has been a part of the Burbank community for 10 1/2 years, and my daughter is a sixth grader at Jordan Middle School, having begun her years of formal education at Roosevelt Elementary. I consider us very lucky indeed to have landed here - for which Disney deserves some credit - and I am proud to be a member of this community.


I am writing to you today as a human being who is passionately dedicated to education. I believe that education is powerful beyond measure, and sits at the root of all things on this planet of ours. It has the power to flourish our communities or destroy them, and we see the results of this time and time again.


On Saturday, February 2nd, my husband, my 11 year old daughter, and I attended the PTA-hosted Community Forum on Public Education. Listening to Mary Perry, Deputy Director of EdSource and amazing human being, speak about the realities of the funding of education in California was.....well, to say "eye-opening" would be a dire understatement. It was in fact earth shattering. It was terrifying. It was one hell of a wake up call. How anyone could have left that room without the will and desire to scream the truth from the rooftops completely eludes me. As horrendous as the state of education is today, at this moment, it pales in comparison to where we are headed.


This morning, I sat on a phone call with the leaders of Educate Our State as they discussed strategy to support Governor Brown's budget, specifically with regard to the temporary tax extensions. Mary had shared this information with us in the February meeting. I am embarrassed to say that, intelligent and aware as I may think I am, I fear I might have been one of those people decrying the Governor's efforts to "raise taxes" had I not been in the February 2nd meeting. It can be plain humbling to discover what you DON'T know, especially about the things that matter.


As of this morning's call, our legislature is five votes short of reaching the 2/3 approval required to put the Governor's initiative on a public ballot, and the early March deadline is rapidly approaching. I believe that we have a responsibility to get the word out, and to support the Governor's efforts. While this is a temporary measure, and perhaps serves merely to duck tape our walls together for a bit longer, without it, we are spiraling downward and the grade is steep beyond measure.


Please, Superintendent Carrizosa, visit the Educate Our State site, and look at what they're trying to do. Please consider getting this word out to as wide a net as you are able to cast. At the very least, please send your own letters to the legislature. They make it very easy, providing online templates. Your leadership has been clearly established here in Burbank, and you should know that those advocates of education in this community speak of you with only the highest regard and respect. They in fact genuinely like you, appreciate your presence in our community, and have great optimism about your contributions.


If there is anything I can personally do in our city to help YOU spread the word, please let me know. In the meantime, I am reaching out to our PTA and my local parents, Facebooking, Tweeting, blogging, and perhaps even ranting on occasion. I may even resort to flyers on doors this weekend. As "green" as that may not be, I suppose it's still one of the best ways to get information in front of people's eyes.


This is important. And difficult. Please help. I thank you, sir, for listening.


Most respectfully,
Karen Hohman Almeida
mother of Isabella Hohman Almeida
Burbank
http://www.congressweb.com/cweb2/index.cfm/siteid/educateourstate
www.educateourstate.org