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| Media Alert - The Good and the Bad |
February 11, 2009
Dear Families,
Budget season is heating up in Harrisburg. It is a challenging time for policy-makers everywhere, including Pennsylvania. As they consider how our tax dollars are invested next year, we will need to be sure they understand how valuable our public cyber schools our to our children. And, because it is budget season, we are sure to see many articles containing attacks on our public cyber schools. We hope whenever you see or hear negative comments about public cyber schools that you speak up and defend your choice in public education.
First some good news...
The Times News recently had an article about a visit by Speaker of the House Keith McCall to Commonwealth Connections Academy, one of Pennsylvania’s public cyber schools. We are thrilled Speaker McCall took time from his schedule to visit CCA, and hope that his other colleagues will be as receptive to learning more about our public schools. You can read more about his visit here: http://www.tnonline.com/node/411837
We hope you will take a few minutes to write Speaker McCall a note to thank him for his interest in public cyber schools and ask for his continued support — regardless of whether you live in his district. You can find his contact information here: http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/legis/home/member_information/house_bio.cfm?id=67 . You should also send a copy of the note you send to him to your own state legislator. You can find out who represents you in Harrisburg by visiting http://www.legis.state.pa.us . This would be a great project for your to do with your children. It is another example of democracy in action!
Now, the bad news...
Once again our public cyber schools have been mischaracterized and unfairly portrayed, this time in an article in the Beaver County Times. The article features the usual critics of public cyber schools and fails to accurately explain how your children only get 80 percent of the taxes you pay for public education! It also fails to say how the districts get an additional 30 percent reimbursement.
You can read the entire article by clicking here: http://www.timesonline.com/articles/2009/02/11/news/doc498e3d68d817c764576218.txt
Again, it is not about the best method for educating our children; it is all about money and control! Our kids are not just a bottom line on a spreadsheet. We know times are tough, but our kids should not be used as scapegoats for financially mismanaged school districts who do not think twice about spending millions of dollars on stadiums and pools or the latest astroturf, but have the gall to blame a handful of cyber students for a tax increase.
As we said earlier, we can expect these types of articles to appear in news outlets across Pennsylvania. It is clear evidence that we are still in a fight to keep our public schools from being cut to the bone! Education was a big winner in the tight budget proposed by the Governor, we need to make sure that our schools are treated fairly as this budget is debated. How can we do that?
It is imperative to write letters to set the record straight. We must continue to correct these mistruths about our schools. School districts are saving money on cyber students!
If you live in the circulation area of the Beaver County Times, please respond. Please use this link to submit your letter: http://www.timesonline.com/opinion/letters_to_the_editor/ Please make sure to keep your letters to 250 words or less. Also make sure to include your name and contact information for verification purposes. They will not print your letter without this information.
This is a special coalition and one of the reasons we are strong and united is we believe in our children's right to a quality education regardless of ability, economic background, geography or social status. We need to put a face on public cyber schools, and cyber families are really the only ones who can do this!
We need to respond. Tell them about your child's successes! We need to continue to fight to defend our public cyber schools! Thank you for helping to protect our schools!
Keep moving forward!
Cindy Strausburger
President
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