Cornbread & Issues

On February 9, 2012 the Kershaw County Teacher Forum met with Kershaw County State legislators. In attendance were Teacher Forum members, administrators and school board members who wanted to hear from Rep. Mia Butler Garrick, Rep. Laurie Funderburk, Senator Phil Leventis and Senator Vincent Sheheen. This was a great session to meet and greet our local legislators as well as informally discuss issues of importance to us. A divine smorgesboard of cornbread and soups, together with dessert was prepared by Joyce Newman and her staff at Lugoff-Elgin Middle School which is where the meeting took place.

I was happy to be able to introduce our legislators as well as be able to thank them for all the handwork they do on our behalf.

Some highlights of the discussions taking place throughout the evening were;

• Act 388, a comprehensive tax reform.
• Base students cost could possibly be a little more than last year but legislators erred on the side of caution to not take this for granted as we are still in a budget crunch. We need to carefully examine what comes from the state department, and as teachers we are the voices that the legislators need to hear from to strengthen the case for fully funding the base students cost to what it should currently be.
• Vouchers and tax credits may be closer to getting passed this year, if this is voted in we could lose millions of dollars from the public school budget.
• Substantive changes in the retirement system will most likely not affect teachers who have been teaching for more than 5 years.
• A step increase for state employees is up for discussion but a cost of living adjustment for teachers is yet to be decided for the coming year.
• Merit pay is being widely discussed and if it is in addition to a regular step increase it could be a positive inclusion. However a one size fits all merit pay system is not necessarily the answer,  this is a very complex issue that our profession needs to be discussing and contacting legislators about.
• The Arts commission  and ETV have seen great reductions in funding and this could be the case again this year.
• NBCT could possibly continue to be funded for another year, but it is being discussed that it may be closed to new applicants.

As this was my first cornbread and issues, I thoroughly enjoyed hearing directly from our legislators, however it is critical now for our professional to take on the responsibility of being politically involved. As educators we know what works, what our students needs are and what tools we need to meet those needs. It is crucial that we communicate this to our legislators. I cannot stress the importance of using your ‘teacher voice’ strongly enough, there are many important issues at stake that relate directly to us and our students, we need to take action give our legislators the backing and information to allow them to do their job to make strong arguments in our favor.