government relations Education Is a Bipartisan Issue –
Everyone Wants Kids to Succeed Brad Schneider, WMEA State Chair, Government Relations
“An educated citizenry is a vital requisite for our survival as a free people.”
~ Thomas Jefferson
The founding fathers understood the im- portant function that
education plays in our society. This com- mitment to educating our young people has continued for 240 years. The “Every Student Succeeds Act” (ESSA) provides a path for the transition of education policy from one presidential administration to the next for several reasons.
First, ESSA received wide bipartisan sup- port, including unanimous support from Wisconsin Senators Baldwin and Johnson as well as all eight Wisconsin congress- men. Second, both parties have expressed support for the flexibility the law affords as it is implemented in each state. Third, ESSA provides grant money via our DPI to assist school districts with program sup- port, including music education needs.
Wisconsin Music Educators Association is taking an active role as ESSA is rolled out. Coordinating with Wisconsin Advocates for Music Education (WAME), WMEA leadership is contacting key state legisla- tors seeking support for the all-important “Well-Rounded Education” language in
ESSA. Other requests include the addition of data to school district annual reports in- dicating student participation in the arts.
WMEA is calling for a statewide drive- in day on February 8, 2017. We are asking members to invest a personal day for conversations with their state sena- tors and assembly members. We will be requesting support for specific portions of ESSA. This WMEA Drive-in Day has the potential to positively affect music education in Wisconsin for the next decade.
We all agree that teaching is more than a job. At times it is critical for us to take a step back from our busy schedules and look at the big picture for our profession and our future students. This is one of those times.
On February 8, we will meet at The Concourse Hotel in Madison for a short orientation covering our basic requests for ESSA implementation. We will then walk over to the Capitol together to meet with our legislators. You are encouraged to bring a colleague and/or music parent and visit the Capitol together.
If you feel compelled to join us in this positive action, go to the WAME website at
wame.wmea.org and look under the “featured links” section.
Most of us are suffering from campaign fatigue in some form, but policy discus- sion is still the way things are done in a democracy. We urge you to participate in this bipartisan effort that will help to provide Wisconsin music students with an excellent “Well-Rounded Education.”
Brad Schneider recently retired from teaching instrumental music at Middleton High School. Email:
brad.schneider102@
gmail.com
28 January 2017
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