Cambridge teachers feel that the over emphasis on testing and data collection is pulling them away from the creative, engaging teaching and learning that their students need and deserve. As Cambridge parents and community members, we wholeheartedly support our public school teachers as they advocate for the children in our community.

For the fifth year in a row, SASD is faced with making deep cuts in our schools because of a broken state funding system that is based on politics rather than on what it actually costs to educate children. In the past 4 years, SASD has eliminated more than 40 full-time teachers and support staff from our schools just to balance the budget. This year we face another massive budget deficit as a result of inadequate state funding. Any additional cuts in programs and services in SASD will have a negative impact on every child in the school district. We need our lawmakers to fix the broken state funding system for education this year —our children cannot afford to lose more from their schools. Our state lawmakers must invest additional state resources into schools so that SASD will will not need to make additional cuts this year and instead be able to begin to restore cuts to programs and services that we have made in recent years and put in place the full set of programs and services our children need.

I'm starting this because entitlement is poison, just because you have a complaint or don't agree with someone doesn't mean you can petition them to lose their job.

The PERS ruling means more teacher layoffs, larger class sizes and shorter school years. We need to block this year's kicker and work towards reforming the law so that we may someday have a stable enough funding source to plan ahead and make long-term investments in our future.

I feel the need for the Drama Department to have more of the basic supplies that we never get. Heck, we even need to fight for our stage half the time! We're just asking for some backdrops or decent lighting, maybe an actual fund that some of the other extracurricular activities get. Mr. Walters is an amazing drama teacher and he as well as the drama department really go under the radar and are un-appreciated half the time.

My daughter has been experiencing bullying from teachers in her school. She's upset about the teachers yelling at her and the other kids. She's told me the teachers tell her that her art work isn't good enough, and when she asks for help with a mean kid the principal ignores her. This has saddened me because I have spoken to principal, teachers, and supervisors with no improvements. I have spoken to other parents with the same concerns. I think that's what's wrong with society, we aren't taught in schools how to communicate when we are upset. Teachers teach by yelling and to discouraging creativity by staying within the line. These children are sent to school with trusting that they are getting the best, but is that the case?

The Utah Department of Education is proposing excellent new science standards for students in grades 6-8 that include scientifically accurate climate change education. While the new standards are overwhelmingly supported by science teachers and scientists, including our own local researchers and university educators, vocal anti-science activists are working to thwart them. These opponents are trying to create the impression that parents in Utah don't want students taught the evidence about human-caused climate change. If they are successful, Utah kids will be kept in the dark about the latest climate research from top scientists. As a climate researcher, an instructional designer, a university educator, but most importantly as a mother of a 5th grader at a Utah public school, that would be simply unacceptable. The Utah Board of Education will vote soon on whether to adopt the new standards. Can you help make sure our students and future decision makers are not denied a world-class science education? Please join me in asking the Utah Board of Education to adopt new school science standards that include climate science! Sincerely, Maria Groves M.A (Science and Instructional Technology), Geography PhD Candidate (Paleoclimatology), Mother, and member of Climate Parents

In response to recent events, the educators and parents of Westside Elementary School have heard "Schools, not Jails" chanted by protestors and comments from politicians like this one from Elijah Cummings, "[W]e must start working now to secure the safety of our children's futures." And yet, the City still plans to close Westside Elementary School, which is only a few blocks away from the heart of Baltimore's rioting and subsequent calls for change. Westside Elementary School serves meals to 300 children, has a high-quality pre-K program, houses a HeadStart program, and operates a weekly food pantry. These programs are in addition to K-5 instruction in literacy, mathematics and, most importantly for any child in America, the lessons in civics and American history that are taught in the building. Westside's teachers hail from some of the best colleges and universities in America including Villanova, Princeton, Lehman College, Johns Hopkins University, the University of Maryland, Towson, Wesley, the University of Virginia, and the University of Chicago. Do not close this school because of a budget issue or because the people in the community were not politically proactive or visible in the ways that the City required. Before you take any action on the fate of the school, why not ask the community what it really thinks? Go door to door. Make phone calls. Come to the school and speak to parents daily. Conduct a study. Get a sense of the will of the people who live there. What do they want? Even if they decide they would rather close the school than renovate or rebuild it, their voices matter. As a teacher in the school, I can see the value that a small community school can have for a neighborhood. I also believe that schools have a sacred value to neighborhoods beyond test scores and attendance numbers. But that is only one opinion. And I don't think the City really knows what the parents and citizens of the neighborhood actually want. So, let's save Westside and start a conversation that includes all the key stakeholders, including the children.

We must act with urgency! As part of the receivership process, a local stakeholders group will be established. This group will make recommendations to the content of the turnaround plan in order to maximize the rapid improvement of the academic achievement of all students. This group must be convened within 30 days of the designation of chronically underperforming. We believe that HTA members selected to represent the entire membership must be determined by a membership vote instead of being appointed by the HTA President, HTA Executive Board or any other party.

A group of parents of Chatham Middle School students are concerned that middle school math performance is in need of improvement. We feel that the program is not working for many of our children. We are starting this petition because we feel this program is doing our children a disservice. These are our key areas of concern: 1) There is insufficient mastery of basic math concepts due to the overemphasis on higher-level problem solving. 2) Small group (peer to peer) learning format is less effective at this age than teacher-led clear direct instruction. In addition, with larger class sizes there are more groups, this makes it hard for teachers to identify which groups/students may be struggling. This method can intimidate those afraid to speak out and get extra help, and it can also hold back the most able students because they are forced to collaborate with less able and motivated students. It can also create confusion if students are unable to explain concepts clearly to one another. This places a lot of burden on our children who are only just learning to self-advocate and are working on building their confidence. 3) Due to the reduced amount of teacher-led instruction, when students are left to investigate and discover key mathematical concepts and skills on their own, this may lead to critical gaps and misconceptions in their knowledge. 4) Language based math programs are discouraging to students who are weaker in language arts, along with adding unnecessary complexity with insufficient practice time. 5) Inadequate information and lack of explanatory prose in the workbooks and online for homework review. This makes it hard for parents to help their children with homework. Some parents have felt they've had no choice but to get outside help when faced with falling grades and frustrated kids. This places additional financial and scheduling burdens on families. If you share these concerns, we ask that you support our request for the School District to review and strengthen the program.

ITT-Technical Institute targeted veterans, low income families and single parents. We were promised a quality education, 80% job placement and that our credits would transfer to other colleges and universities. They forced many of us to pay on our loans while we were in school, after telling us we did not have to pay anything out of pocket until after we graduated. The school never gave us a chance to have control of our financial destiny; they failed to tell students before signing the enrollment agreement that their financial aide would be maxed out by the school. In order for a student to finish the program, they will have to take out the "Temp Credit" through the school at 0% interest until paid off; that was a lie. The school turned around and sold those loans to private lenders with interest rates ranging from 13%-28%; it's like funding your education on a credit card. These were terms set by the banks and the school without the student ever being notified. This is a v iolation of the Truth In Lending Act. Many students were forced to quit their programs before ever gaining their degrees, because they were misled. Others stuck it out, to find out that their degrees hold no value due to the accreditation, value of education and their reputation. We are students, family, friends and supporters that will not stop fighting to get these loans forgiven. Education should be free in the country, putting an end to the predatory lending and the poverty it is creating. "Our voices will be heard." We stand with you, Corinthian 100, Strength in Solidarity.

The educators at California Virtual Academies (CAVA) teach students from all over California in grades K through 12. They are committed to providing the best possible education to their students and upholding the important principles that brought them to the profession. In recent years, the teachers have become increasingly concerned that some decisions made by CAVA negatively impact their students and their profession. Frequent policy changes, shifting class rosters, changes in responsibilities and increased workload make it harder to provide the education our students deserve. Though these dedicated educators are committed teachers who work long hours and struggle to serve their students, it feels like it is never enough. After talking with hundreds of CAVA educators from across the state, the teachers decided it was time for a change. Specifically, they believe educators who work at CAVA ought to have a stronger voice in decisions that impact their school, their students and their working conditions. We, the signers of this petition, support California Virtual Educators’ decision to organize a union with California Teachers Association (CTA) to have a collective voice in achieving the highest quality learning environment for students and working environment for educators. We call on the CAVA Administration to recognize the educators’ 2014 democratic decision to unionize. We call on them to refrain from exercising undue influence or interference. Finally, we believe it is past time for administration to sit down and bargain a contract with CAVA teachers that improves the teaching and learning conditions for all educators and students at California Virtual Academies. We believe working fairly and respectfully with the teachers is in the best interest of CAVA's students, families, educators and community.