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By kwormuth, September 2, 2011 9:43 am

On Wednesday, I spoke at Convocation about how we are all interconnected and need each other to be able to do our jobs well, and how we all need to support each other.  Thank you to all that took that sentiment to heart.  Here are those remarks:

One Team, One Voice

        Teachers, IAs, secretaries, bus drivers, custodians, food service, buildings and grounds workers, and administrators, I welcome you back to another year.  Already, we have been shown that we can never fully know what to expect; what the next day will bring.  After last week’s Earthquake, I am reminded of the fact that we are all on the same team.  When Orange County succeeds, we all succeed.  Every single person in this room has an impact on the education of our students.  Each of you is vital to student learning.

       Our bus drivers are the first to greet the majority of our students every day.  Not only are you charged with safely picking up our children each morning, you also need to safely return them home.  Every bus driver I’ve ever spoken to is an expert in road safety.  Aside from that important task, you can make a big difference in the time between when students step off your bus in the morning and board again in the afternoon.  When students are comfortable and happy on your bus, they are happy walking into our classrooms and often do better.  The inverse is also true, when they do well in our classrooms, they will do better on your bus.  We’re on the same team.

       Many children see is our food service workers right after arriving at school.  You too have the ability to give many students a great start to their day through a quality breakfast and a warm smile.  Hungry kids can’t learn.  If the quickest way to a man’s heart is through his stomach, perhaps it’s the quickest way to a student’s brain too!  We’re on the same team.

       Our custodians arrive long before our first teachers and some work long after the last teacher has left.  Your efforts to keep our buildings clean also help keep our students safe.  Everyday, our floors are swept, the garbage is empty, and the halls are scuff free.  Custodians give us a work environment to be proud of.  We’re on the same team!

       When a building problem gets too big for our custodians, we call in our building specialists, the buildings and grounds workers who work to keep our aging buildings in the best shape they can be in.  Your work often goes unnoticed because much of it can’t be done when students are there, but rest assured, with out your hard work, we’d be either sweating or shivering every day, our ceiling would leak, and perhaps our buildings would crumble in a 5.8 Earthquake!  We’re on the same team!

       Our secretaries are the gate keepers!  Every once in a while, when one is out of the building, we find out just how important they are.  They do more to help classrooms than I could possibly list.  One thing they do really well is keep distractions out of our classrooms.  When a raving parent calls, how often do they take a message so that we can continue teaching?  We’re on the same team!

Instructional assistants are the support staff that we see most in our classrooms.  They literally keep us sane and yet they were the group most hurt by cuts two years a go.  Last year, we felt how deep that wound went.  We experienced less effective literacy groups, more safety problems, and an increase in negative behaviors.  In short, there is no fire too big or small for them to put out in our classrooms! We’re on the same team!

No matter how you look at it, our administrators have a difficult job.  They need to balance the needs of the School Board, Superintendent, Teachers, Students, Parents, and the community.  Any decision they make is bound to help some of those groups and upset others.  I doubt a day goes by where our administrators do not confront difficult situations.  Our administrators take care of the big problems to let us focus on our students.  And now, more they ever, they will be evaluated by the success of teachers, students, and by extension all of our support staff.  We are on the same team.

 And finally to our teachers.  We are the ones who know our students best.  We’re the ones charged with providing a top quality education every day.  We can’t afford an off day.  We strive to do more than we our capable of, because our students deserve our best, and sometimes even that’s not enough.  When that happens we need each other for ideas and support.  We depend on each other to pick up where we left off as our students move to the next grade.  We’re one team!

As you can see, we depend on each other for success. When we see one of our team members down, we need to make sure they’re ok.  My wife and I were picked up by our teams when we were devastated by a miscarriage two years ago.  Not only did our immediate teammates offer us comfort, but so did teammates who hardly knew us.  We felt an immense amount of compassion from all levels.  You never know how much a simple act of kindness can help another through difficulties large and small.

Right now, it seems like we are faced with more of the large difficulties.  Right now, changes are continually mandated on us.  Right now we are told of the need for shared sacrifice.  Right now, it seems like we have no say.  It’s time for that to change.  Stand up if you have gone four years without a raise.  Stand up if you’re tired of seeing great people leave Orange County because they can’t afford to stay!  Stand up if you think our children deserve better!  You’re right, they do deserve better, and so do we!

       I see over 700 people who love their jobs and this community standing up right now.  You are the soul of Orange County.  Together we can change things.  Together we WILL change things.  When the public sees what we see everyday, they will have to support us too!  We can no longer hide in our classrooms and wait for change to happen.  The change we want will never happen that way.   As you go back to your department teams, remember that you are part of a much larger team, and when we support each other inside and outside of our classrooms we will prevail.  Advocate for all of our staff and students and do it often.  Have a wonderful year!

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By kwormuth, March 30, 2011 11:06 am

The following letter will be published in this week’s Orange Review:

Myra Soden is entitled to her own opinion, but not to her own facts.  While Orange County’s public schools may have an overall 15-to-1 student-to-teacher ratio, that does not accurately reflect what our classroom teachers face daily.  When one discounts federally mandated Title I and special education teachers and state-mandated resource teachers, our classroom teachers have a 25-to-1 ratio.  This higher ratio more accurately reflects actual class sizes in Orange County.  Ms. Soden also believes that Orange County teachers make more than double the median income of Orange County.  The reality is that our teachers’ median income is $10,000 less than the median income of the county.

On behalf of the Orange County Education Association (OCEA), we respect Ms. Soden’s right to express her opinions.  Free speech makes our country great.  However, where has Ms. Soden been before last week’s letter?  Has she spoken at any of the school board meetings? Has she spoken at the Board of Supervisor’s meetings?  Has she contacted anyone on the School Board to express her views and concerns?  Based on the statement by the School Board this week, it does not appear so.

As President of the OCEA, I have continually maintained contact with members of the School Board and our superintendent of schools.  Even in times of disagreement they always have been open and honest in their discussions.  We maintain mutual respect to find solutions to the problems faced by our members, our schools and most importantly, our children. 

Ms. Soden did not convey the respect that our schools deserve for their perseverance.  Declining state and local budget trends seem to indicate that many politicians feel as though the mission of public education is now less valuable.  Yet few of them seem to be too concerned that federal and state demands for excellence continue to rise.  While many people seem to be obsessed with the cost of our schools, those same individuals appear to be ignorant of their benefits.  For example, Locust Grove and Lightfoot Elementary schools recently were honored with the Virginia Board of Education Excellence Award.  Last year, all eight of our schools achieved full state accreditation and seven out of eight achieved all of the federal “adequate yearly progress” benchmarks under the federal “No Child Left Behind” law.  It was our best year ever.  The list of achievements by our students and staff members is long and worthy of our community’s pride and appreciation.

Count me among those who are most proud of the work that is done by our OCEA members and their colleagues.  They continue to work to the best of their abilities because they know the children of Orange County deserve better.  They refuse to be torn down by people like Myra Soden.  As you encounter school teachers, bus drivers, secretaries, custodians, and principals, please stop to say thank you. 

Lori Davis

OCEA President

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By kwormuth, February 21, 2011 11:47 am

 Below are important Board of Supervisors dates for us to assert influence.  The meetings in red font are the most crucial.  For some of them there will be public comment sections, and for others we will have to show quiet support for the budget. 

 In both types of meetings, please conduct yourself in a professional and respectful manner.  It is great to be passionate, but stick to the issues, rather than personalities.  If you happen to dislike any board members, you can express your discontent through your vote and support of any candidates who oppose them.  Remember that your words and actions willl reflect on yourself, your school, and OCEA.

Thursday, February 24 – The County Administrator will present her budget and reveal the level of funding she is proposing for the schools.  During this meeting, the public will learn the Supervisors’ “starting point” for their consideration of the School Board’s budget.  The meeting is scheduled to start at 7 p.m., but the start time always is subject to change.  So interested citizens need to confirm the time on the County’s web site within the final 24 hours prior to the session.  It will be a work session, so public comment will NOT be solicited.  However, a large presence of citizens always helps to convey the public’s sense of urgency associated with any given topic, such as the budget.

 Tuesday, March 8 – This will be the Supervisors regular meeting.  It is scheduled to begin at 4 p.m. and they will engage in some general discussion about the budget.  The value of this meeting will be in the fact that it will include an opportunity for general comments from the public.  So this actually will be the first opportunity that the public will have to speak to the Supervisors about the County Administrator’s proposed budget.  Interested citizens should check the county web site on the day prior to the meeting to get a better idea of the approximate times when the Supervisors will provide opportunity for public comment and when they might be discussing the budget.

 Tuesday, March 22 – This will be the Supervisors second regular meeting for the month of March.  It is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m.  Otherwise, this meeting will mirror the March 8 meeting.   You can expect the Supervisors to engage in some general discussion about the budget.  As on March 8, the value of this meeting will be in the fact that it will include an opportunity for general comments from the public.  So this will be the second opportunity that the public will have to speak to the Supervisors about the County Administrator’s proposed budget.  As before, interested citizens should check the county web site on the day prior to the meeting to get a better idea of the approximate times when the Supervisors will provide opportunity for public comment and when they might be discussing the budget.

 Tuesday, April 5 – The Supervisors will conduct their public hearing on the budget and a separate public hearing on the proposed tax levy – or lack thereof.  Note that these are two separate hearings.  Given two separate hearings, the Supervisors will need to receive input on BOTH the public’s interest in the school board’s budget request and the public’s willingness to pay for that request.  Again, the meeting currently is scheduled to begin at 7:30 p.m., but citizens should check the county’s web site within 24 hours of the meeting to confirm the time.  Different individuals should be willing to speak during both public hearings.  While speakers are important, you can not underestimate the equally important message that other will send buy simply attending the meeting.

 Thursday, April 7 – The Supervisors will conduct a budget work session on this date, so public comment will not be solicited.  However, this meeting can be of value because it will permit the public to hear what the Supervisors have to say in reaction to the April 5 public hearing.  The meeting is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m., but it also is subject to change.

 Tuesday, April 12 – The meeting is scheduled to start at 4:00 p.m.  The Supervisors are scheduled to take final action on the budget at this time.  It is a regular meeting, so there may be opportunity for public comment.  The most important function that the public can perform at this meeting will be the simple presence of interested people.  This will be our final opportunity to demonstrate its support for the school budget.

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By kwormuth, January 8, 2011 11:51 am

Below is a link showing how much localities fund beyond what they are required to match from the state.  Orange ranks 129 out of 136 school divisions.  We have truly become what Dr. Grimesey calls “a compliance organization.”  We do not fund beyond what is required.  This is not healthy for the long term growth of education in Orange County.

Madison, the next closest surrounding count on the list, funds 44.6% beyond what they are mandated to.  All of the other surrounding counties are even higher!  That is a huge disparity that has a severe impact on our schools and our children.

Our class sizes are larger, we have less support, more paper work to do, more stress, and the same high demands placed on us. We need to implement more mandates from the state and federal governments, receive less financial support for materials, and less money to update our aging technology resources.  In addition, our incomes have been frozen, and reduced through increased employee contributions.  We now have a decreased take home pay.  All of these factors are pushing good teachers out of Orange County in search of schools that are more well off.  In the end, the health of our schools and the education of our children are suffering.

Last year, we saw teachers leave that were not reduced in force.  The conditions and restraints that have been placed on them has pushed them out the door. We will see more great teachers leave before this is over and will have a harder time competing for highly qualified teachers to replace them. There will be more teachers fresh out of college and less with 5 or more years experience. Teaches need to build and hone their skills through experience. This will take time for the influx of green teachers to acquire.

In addition, our students receive less of our attention the more we are spread thin and they have less opportunities for enrichment, remediation, and extra curricular activities.  In short, they are being short changed on their education.  If this is not remedied soon, we will have a generation of Orange County children with reduced opportunities.  Many may struggle to find jobs and require government assistance just to survive.  What will the cost of those social programs be, and will it be worth the price of not adequately funding their education in the first place?

Chart comparing school divisions effort to fund schools.

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By kwormuth, December 17, 2010 9:16 am

I received the following email from Robley Jones on what the budget is beginning to look like for education.

Governor McDonnell extended the courtesy of an advanced briefing on his VRS proposals to VEA, and the Secretary of Education briefed us on the education budget.

I will first convey what the Governor said regarding VRS and then what was related by the Secretary.  In both cases I will try to summarize what was conveyed and follow with some commentary.

With budget and legislative proposals the Devil is in the details, and more information will follow in the days ahead regarding budget specifics.  Once the session begins please check the Daily General Assembly Reports at www.veadailyreports.com/ Please bookmark this site.

Here is a paraphrased summary of the message of the Governor:

His goal is to present a plan in the best interest of the Commonwealth, a plan that begins to restore solvency to VRS, and a plan that is good for employees.  He wants Virginia to have a retirement system you can count on when you retire.  This will require shared sacrifice.

VRS has an unfunded liability of almost $18 billion.  The recent JLARC study reveals that to restore the fund we need a 44% return on invested assets.  The current funding level of VRS is 75% and in 2014 it is projected that the level will be 61% (57% for the teacher fund).  We “borrowed” $675 million from the VRS fund to balance the budget.

Action is needed now to prop up the system.

Virginia is one of only four states not currently requiring employees to contribute to the system.  He realizes that the state and local governments began paying the 5% years ago in lieu of a salary increase and he is unhappy about changing the deal.

He will be addressing the VRS proposals though my budget and legislation.  His goal is solvency for the system.
State employees will be required to pay the 5% employee contribution.  State employees will receive a three percent salary increase and a two percent bonus, so the impact on take-home pay is a wash.   There will be no increase in health insurance costs for state employees.

Local governments will have the option of requiring employees (including teachers and support personnel) to pay the 5 percent employee contribution.  If they do so they will have to give a 3 percent salary increase.

Note that for those close to retirement that even in there is a negative impact on take-home pay that the salary increase increases your VRA average final salary (AFS) which will raise your retirement benefit.  The 5 percent employee contribution is “pre-tax.”

The plan puts $300 million into the VRS fund.

In addition, He will propose an optional defined contribution retirement plan for new employees.  New employees will be able to elect to participate in either the traditional pension or a new defined benefit plan (a VRS administered 401k).

The Governor closed by asking that we work with him on this issue or pressure for more drastic measures will mount.

That is what I heard the Governor say.

I have three initial comments:

First, for state workers the impact on take-home pay is “a wash.”  For local government employees, including teachers and ESP, the impact on take-home pay is a 2% loss.  Fair?

Second, allowing new hires to choose a defined contribution plan will decrease future contributions to the VRS fund and weaken the current pension system.

Third, we will work with the Governor to improve the funding status of VRS.  In the session ahead, the Governor’s proposals will be given serious consideration, and VEA shares his goal of a more solvent VRS that our members can rely on in retirement.

Now to the Secretary of Education’s budget briefing -

Some funding changes will result from improved sales tax revenues, enrollment did not grow as quickly as projected, and there will be reprogramming of discretionary spending in FY12.

The $57.6 million used to hold localities harmless from the LCI changes will be diverted to VRS and to provide $3 million for pay-for-performance pilots.  This reduces direct aid by $54.6 million.

Technical changes at DOE- career and technical education (-$20,000)

Eliminate grants for regional superintendents

Eliminate $2 million in Public Broadcasting funding in each year of biennium

Add $63,000 for free and reduced lunch program

Pre-school initiative is cut $22,000.

We will provide much more information when we have the opportunity to examine the budget document.

Thank you,

Robley Jones

VEA GR&R

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By kwormuth, November 8, 2010 2:43 pm

On Saturday, the Virginia PTA recognized Dr. Grimesey for Child Advocate of the Year.  In his acceptance speech, Dr. Grimisey credited many individuals and groups including the OCEA on their involvement in pushing back the state budget cuts.  His words show how in a time of need, we all came together despite our many differences.  Here is the full text of his comments:

Saturday, November 6, 2010

Remarks  PTA Convention

Richmond Convention Center, 10:00 a.m.-Noon

Thank you Kathy for your kind-but-overly-generous introduction.  Thank you PTA Board of Managers for allowing me to represent the many child advocates  – parents, teachers, administrators, support staff, school board members and other citizens – of Orange County as well as the many child advocates among my fellow members of the Virginia Association of School Superintendents, or VASS.  Thank you Debi and Kathy for the outstanding advocacy you provide for all of Virginia’s PTA chapters.  And finally, thank ALL OF YOU here today.  Corporately all of YOU truly are Virginia “Child Advocates of the Year” and I am greatly humbled to stand before YOU.

I also must confess a degree of awkwardness.  To be honest, I have struggled somewhat with this notion of being recognized as an INDIVIDUAL “Child Advocate of the Year” in front of an audience of volunteer advocates who are investing their own times and  – in many cases –  their own dimes at a convention in a somewhat distant city that requires many to remain overnight.   My only solace has been found in the understanding that Virginia PTA finds inspiration in me as a SYMBOL for the hard work of many others.  Indeed it is the broader ORANGE COUNTY story  - and NOT its school superintendent’s story – which affords inspiration to other child advocates across the Commonwealth.  Permit me then, to share three chapters from the broader story of how Orange County emerged in 2010 as a symbol of community collaboration and of child advocacy in Virginia.

First a prologue. Orange County is located in central Virginia between Fredericksburg and Charlottesville.  Although the easternmost end of our community includes large housing subdivisions which form the outer-most ring of the northern Virginia suburbs, the bulk of our County more closely resembles much of rural Virginia.  Agriculture remains our heart and soul with our vineyards becoming increasingly attractive to out-of-town visitors.  Orange County also was the home of two American presidents – James Madison and Zachary Taylor – and the scene of significant Civil War activity, particularly the battle of the Wilderness where Robert E. Lee faced Ulysses S. Grant for the first time.  We are home to just over 5,000 public school students who populate a high school, two middle schools and five elementary schools.  Like every other community, we have our disagreements and we find it challenging to balance the diverse interests of our eastern and western communities.

My home is located in that more suburban eastern-end of Orange County and my office is located in the beautiful rural small town of Orange on the western side of the County.  I have found no shortage of child advocates in both of Orange County’s “worlds.”  And in 2010, they have spoken with one voice on behalf of children.

Now for Chapter 1, which is the somewhat unglamorous story that is referenced in the convention program.  Six of our central office administrators serve as the chief advocates of Chapter 1.  In late 2009, Governor Tim Kaine expressed concern that the numbers of Virginia’s school administrators and support staff had increased between 1994 and 2009 at a per-capita rate that exceeded the growth rate of teachers.  He used that concern to justify his proposal to significantly reduce the state’s share of basic aid funding to our schools.  It’s almost impossible for small rural school divisions to refute such assertions since such they maintain very small central office staffs.  In response to Governor Kaine’s assertion, however, our Orange County staff agreed to invest much extra time to present evidence which demonstrated the actual time-cost associated with many of the mandates that Virginia’s governors and legislators had approved during the previous 15 years.

In the end, our staff – NOT  I –  produced a document that enabled PTA’s own Kathy Burcher,    VASS’s Bill Pruitt, Al Butler and Milton Liverman, VSBA’s Pat Lacy, VEA’s Rob Jones and others to raise awareness about the degree to which state and federal government mandates were driving the cost of education and requiring the need for personnel who could help their localities ensure their compliance with those many mandates.   I also must give credit to Ed Scott, our Republican representative in the House of Delegates and to Edd Houck, our Democrat representative in the Virginia State Senate.  BOTH our Republican Delegate and our Democrat Senator seized the document and used it extensively in their efforts to build bi-partisan support for what eventually became a bill that either cancelled or postponed several costly mandates.  Let me make clear that our efforts were never about the merits of the requirements.  Instead our case was, and remains, the need for all citizens to share in the cost of all requirements that the federal and state governments impose on our local schools.

Chapter 2. The chief advocates of Chapter 2 were members of our Orange County Education Association (or OCEA), as well as hundreds of other employees, parents, citizens and even students.  As we unraveled the emerging impact of last year’s budget cuts,  members of the Orange County School Board and I scheduled a series of “town meetings” in each of our schools with employees, parents and other citizens.  We used the meetings to explain the complexities of state education funding and the manner by which state revenues were going to be cut.  No meeting concluded until all citizen questions were answered.  As awareness of the coming budget cuts became more apparent to more people, School Board members and I were inspired by an outpouring of support and a growing willingness by many to become more actively involved.  Lori Guess, a bus driver and member of the OCEA Executive Committee, asked me if we could approve the use of school buses to haul employees, parents and others to a rally at the General Assembly on a Saturday in February.  For the purpose of full disclosure, let the record show that I told Lori that it was NOT OK to use school busses for that purpose!!!  It was only when Lori clarified that the riders would pay to cover the cost of the drivers and fuel that I approved the request.  So count Lori Guess as more of a child advocate than me!

Another OCEA member, Kyle Wormuth, then established a Facebook web site that applied the power of social networking to promote the rally.  The rally subsequently gained the endorsement of the VEA, PTA chapters and other groups.  In the end, over 200 Orange County employees, parents, students and others gathered in Richmond, where they were joined by over 300 other advocates from every corner of Virginia.  Well over 500 advocates joined together on that cold Saturday in February to sing and speak with one voice.  The rally received very positive coverage in television outlets and in newspapers throughout the Commonwealth.  The turnout exceeded the wildest dreams of everyone – except for Lori Guess, Kyle Wormuth and our OCEA president, Wanda Jones.  In May, all three of them appeared on stage with VEA President Kitty Boitnott during the main session of the VEA convention to receive special recognition for their local association’s efforts to advocate on behalf of our children.

Let me conclude with Chapter 3, which is still being drafted.  Last spring, Kathy, Debi, Chuck Saylor and others travelled to Orange and facilitated a meeting of parent representatives from each of our County’s parent-teacher organizations.  None of our schools were associated with PTA at the time, so they provided the usual information about the Association’s benefits.  But the PTA group’s primary message was the need for our Orange County parent groups to seek more ways to work with each other – irrespective of PTA membership –  and to consider ways to broaden their capacity to advocate at the state and federal levels.  Several of our parents later told me that they appreciated the lack of a “PTA hard sell” and indicated that the PTA group’s modesty actually increased the attractiveness of PTA membership.

Today I am happy to report that our Lightfoot Elementary School has established a PTA chapter, and that Unionville Elementary School is not far behind.  Parents at several of our other schools also are continuing to consider PTA membership.  More importantly, parent representatives from ALL of our schools are working together to develop a county-wide council of PTOs and PTAs intended to sustain the momentum they established throughout the first half of 2010.  THOSE parents are the chief advocates of our Chapter 3.

Well, I trust that you have found some inspiration in this story of one community’s efforts to represent the needs of its children.  In closing, accept Orange County’s thanks for all of your efforts to advocate on behalf of ALL children across Virginia.  Accept our best wishes for your continued efforts in the coming year.

Now as I return to my seat, I ask that you please direct your applause NOT to me – but rather to all THOSE Orange County advocates who WE honor with THIS AWARD today.  And thank you on their behalf.

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By kwormuth, October 7, 2010 7:36 am

Education historian Diane Ravitch has been quoted in the Washington Post explaining why test scores do not work for evaluating teachers.

And so I concluded that value-added assessment should not be used at all. Never. It has a wide margin of error. It is unstable. A teacher who is highly effective one year may get a different rating the next year depending on which students are assigned to his or her class. Ratings may differ if the tests differ. To the extent it is used, it will narrow the curriculum and promote teaching to tests. Teachers will be mislabeled and stigmatized. Many factors that influence student scores will not be counted at all.

The latest review of value-added assessment was written by New York University economist Sean Corcoran. He examines value-added assessment in Houston and New York City. He describes a margin of error so large that a teacher at the 43rd percentile (average) might actually be at the 15th percentile (below average) or the 71st percentile (above average).

Under NCLB our Addequate Yearly Progress (AYP) is determined by comparing last years scores to this year’s scores. We have no control over what students come into our classes. Some years we have entire classes that are higher or lower than the previous years class. When a low class comes in after a high class our scores may drop even with great instruction. This is why test scores are so unreliable for evaluating teacher performance.

In addition, administrators could show favortism to teachers that they personally like by stacking their class with high performing students while setting good teachers up for failure by stacking their class with low performing students. Under this scenario a less effective teacher could, and likely would, out perform a more effective teacher.

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By kwormuth, April 1, 2010 10:20 am

NBC has a web report where the reporter introduces the story claiming that Orange County hopes to raise teacher pay. This is false and needs to be countered at every opportunity! We have worked too hard to help reduce the cuts from the state, secure level funding and reduce the impact on classrooms to allow false reporting to happen. Please, talk to everyone you know and make it clear that nobody expects or even hopes for a raise while we are loosing our colleagues and opportunities for our students through this budget crisis!

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By kwormuth, February 27, 2010 10:51 pm

twisted sister clip

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By all accounts, the rally was a great success today. Hundreds of people gathered in Capitol Square to exercise their first amendment rights.  We screamed, “We’re not gonna take it!”  We heard from teachers, parents, administrators, students and a state senator.  Each, in their own way, told of the devastation that we face without a change in course.  Each gave us new hope that as we come together, the blows may be lessened, if not prevented.

We wish to thank everyone who came out for supporting the rally.  You are the ones who made it special to us.  You help show that there are still things worth fighting for.  So yeah, “we’re not gonna take it, anymore!”