Linking Up

The election is November 6, 2012.

67 days from now.

In that time we need to communicate to people that

Adult Education matters

and

We need to vote Yes on Prop 30.

Here at the San Mateo Adult School, we have created bumper stickers

and the Teachers' Union has created t-shirts

We have also started the video project at www.adulteducationmatters.com

Work needs to be one on that - but at least the website has been started.

We have started a listserve - adulteducationmatters@yahoogroups.com

EVERYONE is welcome to join and use this listserve to share information, ideas, articles, events, etc.

At City College, they have started a blog, http://iamcitycollege.tumblr.com/.

Los Angeles and other Adult Schools have started blogs:

http://saveadulted.wordpress.com/.

All these ideas and methods can be shared, built on, and linked up.

If you would like to link up to anything that we at the San Mateo Adult School is doing, please contact us. 

Just leave a comment here on the blog or message me through the San Mateo Adult School Facebook page.

And if you have ideas, projects, blogs, websites to share or link to, most definitely let us know about them.

I will post them here so we can all link to them.

Many of us care.

Many of us know how important this election and these ideas are.

Working together, we can accomplish a lot.

The Cracks Deepen - More on CCSF

This post focused on a bit from the Politics Blog of the San Francisco Bay Guardian:  "City College Board Takes It's First Step Toward Scaling Back Its Mission."

I have temporarily removed this post because the new Mission Statement for City College is still in debate.  The Board will vote on it in September. 
According to the bit from the Politics Blog, they removed many of the programs which are the Adult Education programs - GED, High School Diploma, Disabled Adults, Older Adults, while retaining non-credit ESL (which is also an Adult Education program).

But a comment on the Politics Blog says that Transitional Studies (GED) was reinstated.

What I can say with confidence is:

The Mother Ship - CCSF - is in trouble.

And what is being slashed during this crisis is the Adult Education programs.

List Serve for People Who Care About Education

We have started a list serve so that people - all over the state - can communicate about the current crisis in education, especially adult education.

This list serve is for EVERYONE for cares about education - students, teachers, parents, college students, adult education students, friends, neighbors, taxpayers - EVERYONE.

Teacher David Doneff has written this explanation of what a list serve is about, how it can help us, and how you can join:

As you may know, we have a political action committee at school that is trying to figure out how to fight the cuts and closures happening to adult schools around the state. We think we can no longer sit by and watch other adult schools close while hoping that we won’t be next because of our extremely supportive district. We also believe that it is ineffective for schools to fight individually; to have any power we must fight together.

As a first step, we have created an email list/Yahoo group to allow us to communicate with other adult schools and anyone who wishes to support adult education, and all public education, in California . We hope that you will join our group. Even if you don’t want or are unable to participate politically, we still encourage you to join so that you can receive emails and information about what’s going on.

It’s simple to do.

1.  Go to www.Yahoo.com 

2.  Under Yahoo Sites, click More Yahoo Sites

3.  Then click Groups

4.  And then search for adulteducationmatters.

Note:  You will need a Yahoo ID (that means a yahoo email) to join, but you can choose to receive emails at a non-Yahoo address when you sign up.  After that, you never need to use your Yahoo ID again if you don’t want to.

Also:  You can go onto the group page and check out the Files section, which has some information about adult ed. More will be added.

Please encourage anyone and everyone you know who wishes to support adult ed and all public education, to join this group. This includes educators, students, parents, citizens, and anyone else who cares about public education. Let me know if you have any questions or need help.

ABC - Adult Education Matters! - Back from Break - Calling for Contributions

Hi Folks,

I'm back from break and I've got lots of good and important stuff to post.

I'll get to them one post at a time.

But AGAIN - not only do we here at the San Mateo Adult School WELCOME your posts, comments, information and opinions, we CALL for them.

We hope this will be a clearinghouse of information for all of us who know that

ADULT EDUCATION MATTERS!

and want to see it continue.

And speaking of clearinghouses...  let me get to that next post right now...

We Are Many

We are many who need Adult Education.

We are many who know Adult Education matters.

And we are marny who are working to see Adult Education survive this crisis and continue to serve the people of California.

Check out this great blog and the great work these folks are doing:

http://saveouradultschool.wordpress.com/

It provides a great summary of the what is happening in Adult Education, how we got here, and what we can do now to get through it.

Save City College of San Francisco Campaign

As we know, City College of San Francisco, a community college, is in a difficult situation, facing the same budget cuts all schools can expect if Prop 30 doesn't pass, as well as facing possible loss of accreditation.

Both these challenges affect thousands, both directly and indirectly.

And both these challenges affect Adult Education because in San Francisco, Adult Education is run by City College as their Non-Credit Program.

City College is the largest college in California.  What happens in these next few months, concerning both the accreditation issue and further budget cuts, is of great importance to all Californians.

It is similar to when the Adult Education program in Los Angeles, the largest such program in California, faced complete devastation.

What happens to these large programs matters to all of us and sets a tone for how things may be handled in places that are smaller in number but no less important on a human scale. 

Thanks to Teacher Bruce for providing us with following information about the Save City College of San Francisco from the 1% Campaign.

Save City College from the 1% Campaign1. On opening day, August 15, at CCSF,
10 am to the evening, join the students and community to spread information thru teach-ins, speak outs, rallies, music, informational pickets & tabling about accreditation, austerity/budget cuts, privatization, Parcel Tax, etc.
50 Phelan Ave, Ocean Campus three blocks from Balboa Park BART station, or any of the 9 campuses that you wish to outreach at during welcome week.

2. At the Occupy Forum Monday August 13 at 6 pm, learn; discuss; get materials
Education Under Attack:  3543 18th Street, S.F. near Valencia and Guerrero.
http://www.occupyforumsf.org/calendar/event/2012-08-14-010000/education-under-attack-austerity-privatization-and-profit

3. Help with final details & receive materials at the Occupy Action Council Sunday 2 pm at 209 Golden Gate at Leavenworth, Local 2, near Civic Center BART or

4. Or sign-up with the CCSF Associated Students to host an event:  https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?formkey=dG1pWXMzRXNYMk9TUmlHRi12clFzamc6MQ