The next few weeks are extremely important to our children and our public schools. The outcomes of the primary election on August 8 and the general election on November 7 will determine the Legislature’s level of support for public education.
Four years ago, Mississippians elected a corps of pro-public school candidates – and it paid off. We saw teacher pay raises, increased school funding, better access to pre-k, and myriad other pro-public school advances. We can’t afford to go backward!
We must re-elect lawmakers who have been supportive of public schools and replace those who haven’t.
The good news is that public school educators, parents, and supporters make up the largest voting bloc in Mississippi, and there are many candidates, in both parties, running on a public education platform. If we stick together and support the candidates who support our public schools, we can make even more progress for our children and teachers.
The first step is knowing where the candidates stand on public education. Starting today, you can learn that on our Candidate Q&A web site.
We asked candidates for their thoughts on issues like school funding, teacher pay, pre-k, and the voucher scheme that takes millions of dollars away from public schools to fund private academies. You can see their answers here.
When candidates don’t respond to our questionnaire, it sometimes means they don’t want you to know their positions on public education. But occasionally it’s just an oversight. If candidates in your district haven’t responded, ask them to do so now. Send them this link to our Candidate Q&A, and encourage them to respond. Be sure to use your own social media pages to share links to candidates’ answers – let’s get the word out about their positions on public education!
A few minutes of your time can ensure that we elect people who will support our public schools. Our Election Toolkit provides step-by-step tips that make it easy to identify pro-public school candidates and help them win. You’ll find information on how to check your voter registration, vote absentee, help friends get registered, and more.
If you’d like more details on how to get involved, shoot us an email or give us a call at 601.961.4551. Our kids are counting on us, and together, we’ve got this!
Nancy Loome
The Parents’ Campaign Research & Education Fund
