Essex County College students face many issues that could affect their education, finances being a primary issue. With the advent of tablets and e-books and e-book readers, ECC has an opportunity to lower costs for students and to provide them with some technology that will assist in competing in the ever changing world of today. We are calling for your support to convince the administrators that a tablet or e-book reader included in the tuition would lower cost for students.

Student loan debt in our country is higher than ever. Interest rates are climbing and we are not able to pay our principal balance off because our payments are solely going towards interest. Private loan interest is even higher than federal loans. If borrowers cannot pay down their principal balances than they will never be able to contribute to a positive economy. Take action by signing this petition to lower interest rates for federal and private loans.

The efficacy of corporal punishment has shown to be minimal, at best. 19 states still allow paddling and other forms of physical punishment in school. In my state, each community sets its own policy; and in many communities schools are allowed to discipline the students with corporal punishment against the wishes of parents.

School libraries nationwide continue to be decimated and closed by exclusion from Race To The Top (RTTT) and Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) funding currently up for renewal in congress. Teacher Librarians and well stocked school libraries not only instill a love of reading and access to books, e-books and computers, but are often the only place where ALL students, especially those living in poverty, receive access to those resources and training from a qualified teacher in cyber safety and Information Literacy research skills; how to find, evaluate and appropriately use a spectrum of print and digital media and information. Democracy depends on an informed citizenry of lifelong learners. If reading support and Information Literacy training vanish from our school libraries, or if our school libraries close, our whole nation is dumbed down.

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The cost of attending institutes of higher education has grown to be prohibitively expensive. By eliminating just the interest on loans, the repayment time could be reduced by up to 10 years in certain cases. Lets stop crippling our young people with debt for pursuing their dreams!

Save Our Schools is a national organization dedicated to eliminating high stakes testing of students and high stakes evaluation of teachers. It calls for equitable funding of schools; curriculum developed for and by local school communities; and teacher, family and community leadership in forming public education policies

Amend Prop 13: It can protect seniors and return California to educational excellence while more fairly collecting the State's taxes and restoring fair markets to the portion of our real estate that is not inhabited by seniors. Prior to Prop 13, California had the highest-quality public education system in the country which was the envy of all. Now, California is ranked dead LAST among the states for educational spending (where is the 'fat' in that?) and the public education that is provided is mere shell (no PE, no music, no libraries, no computer labs, no art, deteriorating campuses, large class sizes, etc) Prop 13 was conceived to protect seniors from being driven from their homes by rising property values once they were on a fixed income (presumably over 65). Instead, not only are seniors given the benefit of Prop 13 tax reductions, corporations, heirs, and many, many people of tremendous wealth also are sheltered from paying market value property taxes that used to support our school systems. Here is an example of Prop 13's unfairness: Younger generations can inherit the Prop 13 valuation of their parent's or grandparent's property, thus contributing a pittance in taxes while still being eligible to utilize all of the public resources of their neighbors who are paying market value property taxes. Even worse, the heir does not even have to occupy the inherited property. S/he can rent it, thereby giving this income property an unfair advantage in competition vs. other landlords. There are many ways that Prop 13 deforms the fair and competitive markets for real estate. In this way, Prop 13 has created a 'landed class' of preferential tax treatment similar to the colonial 'land grants' that were preferentially distributed by the King of Spain to his nobles. Moreover, Prop 13 tax benefits/reductions are provided to Corporations as well--WHY? Who does this benefit? This was not the intent of Prop 13 and should never have been a part of the law. It was a clever Bait-and-Switch by monied interests to defraud California citizens of their public educational system brick by brick, year after year. Warren Buffet recommended to a former CA governor that Prop 13 be amended but instead that governor stuck his head in the sand and called Prop 13 'the 3rd rail'. After 33 years, it is clear that Prop 13 has created an unfair tax system, preferentially benefitting the wealthy, and while it protects seniors (as it should), it has stripped California residents of one of their most valuable and worthy public institutions. Prop 13 should be re-written to protect seniors and seniors only. Market-value property taxes should be returned to corporations, non-original owners of property (i.e. heirs), and to income properties. Of course, Prop 13 has created so much market distortion in its 33 years that this would have to be phased-in over some years but I'm certain that California, as a whole, will benefit in the long-run and cheer that some sanity was finally returned to our tax system and some investment returned to educating the next generation.

Fort Massac State Park, near Metropolis, IL, is Illinois first state park. Unfortunately, the most vivid and unique part of the park, the replica of an 1802 American Outpost Fort, has been closed to the public because of safety concerns. Structural flaws and premature deterioration of the palisades and fraising are the cause of these concerns. Please help the Friends of Fort Massac lobby the state of Illinois for money to repair this historic fort replica.

H. Res. 319 is the "STEM to STEAM" proposal that seeks to add funding for Arts and Design to federal STEM funding.

With University education moving beyond the affordability of middle income students, there is a need for a self supporting federal online university, at a student cost of under $1,000 dollars per school year. Professors would need to be the best in the nation. Students would be able to move at their own pace. Passing a course would require "mastery". This would end college created student debt and allow any deserving student to earn a respected degree.

Did you know that our state constitution requires Washington to fully fund basic education? In fact, it calls it the state’s “paramount duty”. Washington has the strongest language of any state when it comes to education funding---no other state constitution protects public education to the extent ours does. So, WHY are the Governor and legislators considering the following in order to balance the state budget? 1) Reduce the school year by 5 days. 2) Increase class sizes by average of two students per class in grades 4 through 12 3) Cut teacher salaries. 4) Reduce teacher health care benefits. 5) Slash funding for 1,000 preschool students. 6) Reduce assistance to property-poor school districts by $150 million. 7) Suspend salary step increases for teachers. 8) End sick leave cash-out for employees not retiring. 9) Eliminate funding for student bus transportation. 10) Eliminate the National Board bonus. 11) Cut funding for all-day kindergarten in high-poverty schools. HERE ARE THE FACTS 1) Washington is 49th in the nation in class size. 2) We rank 47th in the nation in per-pupil spending. 3) We’re dead LAST in average teacher compensation among West Coast states. 4) Nearly 3,700 educators’ jobs have already been slashed by the legislature. 5) Enrollment in our state has surged by almost 7,000 students. 6) The legislature suspended all funding for I-728, which provided class size reduction money to districts. 7) Gone also is I-732, which guaranteed an annual cost-of-living adjustment for school employees. 8) Salaries for teachers were cut an equivalent of 6.4 days over the past several years. 9) Health benefits have been frozen for teachers, despite increases in medical premiums. 10) The legislature “hijacked” federal funding for education jobs, keeping the money intended to go directly to local school districts. 11) The legislature cut almost $2.5 billion from public schools during the last three legislative sessions. As a part of a Day of Action across the state, November 28th teachers, district workers and pro-public education supporters will be wearing red to signify our collective belief that our legislators should NOT CUT public education and instead find other solutions to our tax revenue shortfall. If we can get enough signatures quickly, on November 28th as part of the Day of Action, this petition will be delivered to our legislators as they start the special session to deal with the projected $2 billion shortfall. Find more related info here: http://www.washingtonea.org/