Use Your Tools

Quick! 

Name the most important tool humans have!

Did you say this?

If you did, you are CO-rrect!

Opposable thumbs!  Yes!

It's also called getting your hand up, asking what you don't know, sharing what you do.

Speaking up.

It's time.

We're in process.

The Governor has come out with the May Revise and it has some good parts, some very, very good parts, some not so good parts, and some bad ones.

And...

we're in process.

San Mateo Assistant Director Tim Doyle breaks it down for us:

“The governor’s proposals have been introduced to both houses as trailer bills to a budget omnibus bill.  They will go to the subcommittees which make recommendations, changes, etc and send it to the full house.  Each house will vote on their version of the entire budget bill.  It passes with a simple majority vote.  A committee of senators and assemblypersons will reconcile the differences between the bills and send that to the governor for his yea or nay.  The governor does have line item veto power so he can line out items he doesn’t agree with.”

And ACSA (Association of California School Administrators) says:

The next 30 days leading to the adoption of the state budget by June 15th will be a fast paced process with many different rumors and proposals arising before the final adoption takes place.  Every education stakeholder will advocate for their point of view and attempt to sway the Legislature.  It is more likely that the governor will push to pursue something within the budget process because that is where his leverage lies.  However, the Legislature will continue to pursue the policy process in an effort to give stakeholders a public forum to voice concerns or support.  

That means nothing is set yet for sure.

Except...  we have this window of time... this public forum... in which we can speak.

If you like something... if you don't like something...

you need to get your hand up!!!

You can email, you can snail mail, you can phone call.

And you haven't used it, you can use this:

The Rebuild Adult Education petition.

http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/rebuild-adult-ed-k-12

When you sign it...

when you leave a comment!!!

it flies to every single Legislator and the Governor instantly!

Wow!

Magic hold your hand up get chosen every time!

So if you haven't yet signed the petition - or left a comment! - use this tool!

And if you have, lend that tool to someone who needs it

Just like you'd lend them one of these:

You can even sing this song while you're using your tools or lending them:

Singing songs while you work not only makes life more fun...

it's sometimes lifesaving.

I know...  is this process EVER gonna end?

Haven't we been doing this forever already?

Kinda, sorta not, my friends.

It's only been four and a half years since Hurricane Housing Crash.

Adult Ed was doing fine till then.   It was doing great.

People worked for generations to get the freedoms we have now.

We can work a little longer.

Singing will help.


So okay then...

what do you like?

what do you dislike?

about the May Revise?

What do you want the Legislature to know?

We are the people.

The Governor and the Legislature work for us.

And they can't do their jobs if we don't speak and tell them what we need them to do.


Use your tools!