All, Please consider calling Senator Clark Jolley and ask him to please make sure that HB 2642 gets a hearing on the floor. Please consider asking him to support HB 2642 funding Common Education. This is an important phone call and It is important that these phone calls are made soon. You will probably just get to speak with the secretary and share. Senator Clark Jolley Appropriations Chair (405) 521-5622 Possible facts for conversation: • Oklahoma school districts have experienced the most severe state funding cuts in the nation. Oklahoma ranks 1st in per pupil funding cuts in the nation • Oklahoma is ranked 49th in the nation and last in the region in per pupil funding. • Teachers and support personnel have not had a state funded salary increase in seven years. • State appropriations to common education in Oklahoma are $230 million below the 2008-2009 funding levels while we are serving 40,000 more students. • Funding for public education has fallen from 38.2% of the total budget appropriations to an all-time low of 33.2%. . Schools receive $243.80 less per student than they received in 2008-2009. • Student academic achievement is being negatively impacted as a result of funding cuts to common education. • Because of underfunded budgets class sizes are growing drastically affecting student learning. • House Bill 1017, a true education reform bill was passed twenty four years ago limiting class sizes to 20 students and providing salary increases to teachers. Due to drastic funding cuts this true reform bill has been dismantled. If Deer Creek Schools had the per pupil funding for 2008-2009, they would have an additional $1,689,570 .00. This would put the equivalent of twenty-nine teachers with 10 years’ experience and a master’s in the classrooms thus addressing the increasing class size problem. Current early childhood class sizes in Deer Creek range from 24 to 27 students per classroom. This is a long way from the legislated appropriate class size of 20 per classroom for grades Pre-K through 3. Without a true commitment to funding education, these class size numbers will continue to rise. We ask you to commit to not passing bills on charter and virtual schools that take money away from public education. We ask you to commit to making funding common education a true priority in this state. • 49th in per pupil funding is not okay. • Number one in the nation in funding cuts for common education is not okay. We are asking you to support HB 2642. All are asking you to make our children a priority at least as high as roads. We hope we can count on you to make education a priority not only with words but with action. We ask you to vote to fund public education not only for the children of Deer Creek but for all of the 678,000 children of Oklahoma. We ask you to support HB 2642. The future of Oklahoma’s greatest asset, 678,000 Oklahoma children, rests in your hands. Your phone call on this most important bill is greatly appreciated. Thank you, Ranet Tippens
Posted on: Fri, 04 Apr 2014 19:11:52 +0000
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