In November, the board of trustees of Montgomery College announced without previous warning that they would close the Early Childhood Centers at Rockville and Takoma Park in June of 2016. When I made the decision to change careers—leaving a 20-year career in advertising to pursue my dream of becoming a nurse-midwife—my family had to figure out how we could afford my tuition and early childhood education for our two young children on one salary. At first, it seemed impossible. With our income we didn't qualify for Head Start or other public programs, but the private options we found were too much for us to afford. When we found the Early Learning Center at Montgomery College, we were elated. Not only did the center offer a discounted rate for students, but it was one of the few centers in our area accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children. The Early Learning Center has made it possible for me to pursue my dream, and it’s provided a safe, welcoming environment where our children thrive. Now, without seeking community input or providing any warning, the college has decided to close the center at the end of this school year. We've formed a parents group that wants to help. We're asking the board to keep the centers open for two years, and to work with us to find a solution. We have skills and experience in grant writing, fundraising, marketing, organizing and advocacy, and we're ready to be a partner in this work. Affordable and high-quality early childhood education is difficult to find. Recent studies have shown that families are going into deep debt—and even falling into poverty—to find quality education for young children. The American Association of University Professors released a recent report showing that child care on campus is "a must for mothers in college." http://www.aauw.org/2014/05/06/child-care-on-cc-campus/ Montgomery County is known for its high-quality public education system. The county itself recognizes the importance of expanding programs for more families. Just last spring, the County Council passed Bill 11-15 to expand access to quality care for the most vulnerable and low-income families. But, for many middle-income families like mine, quality early childhood education is out of reach. Even with a well-paying job, we cannot afford for me to attend school full time and pay for school for our two young children. The Early Learning Center at Montgomery College has made it possible for me to pursue my life-long dream—a dream that will also allow me to give back to my community as a nurse. I urge you to find a way to keep the centers at Rockville and Takoma Park/Silver Spring open for two years and work with our community to find a permanent solution. We need the centers so that families like mine can continue to pursue a quality education for adult students and our young children.

Legislation has recently been introduced to change existing laws to permit West Virginia University to relocate West Virginia University Institute from Montgomery to Beckley. This relocation can greatly impact many negatively, including: Employees, students, community, business owners, etc. We have till the morning of Tuesday, February 9, 2016, to gather signatures and support.

CCC's students require government representation as the campus develops, and this won't be achieved without representation by peers who've shared their same experiences.

Please join us in urging the legislature to resist making further cuts to the KCTCS budget. Community and technical colleges are more important than ever in economically-challenging times, and we should be making a stronger commitment to them--not cutting back!

Since the beginning of the 2015-2016 term, the SSCCC has continuously failed to follow their governing documents. No agenda during the current term has been sent out in compliance with our bylaws. Every agenda has been sent out less than the five (5) calendar days required. Failure to follow our governing documents forced the SSCCC to invalidate elections this term. Failure to follow our governing documents has created a situation where board recognized Student Body Organizations were not recognized at Fall 2015 General Assembly. The SSCCC has failed to follow rules set in place by the the Council itself. Meeting times were not adequately reflected based on the Council’s decision to extend meeting times. The SSCCC has not posted minutes to their website since the September meeting. The SSCCC routinely sends out agendas without completed supplementary documents available for public inspection before the day of the meeting. Students cannot call into meetings with an informed viewpoint. The SSCCC routinely labels resolutions infeasible due to lack of interest in implementation. The SSCCC routinely ignores the student voice by not implementing resolutions. We, the students of the California Community College system, demand the SSCCC follow their governing documents, implement resolutions fairly, and increase transparency at all organizational levels.

SJEC drafted this letter to be delivered to those in charge of the hiring process for our new dean. We are reaching out to students across the School of Education (at all levels, in all programs) in hopes that you will endorse this letter and add to the strength of our voices. Please sign and share among your SOE colleagues, especially those in different program areas. THANK YOU!! (Note: We are asking for student representation in the hiring process, but this representation does not have to be SJEC affiliated.)

This a petition for colleges in caucus states to excuse students who want to vote on caucus day, and to encourage students to exercise their right to vote and promote a healthy democracy. We find it disturbing that many students have reported a fear of missing class as a reason not to vote, and that schools are failing in their responsibility to facilitate young voters' participation in the democratic process. For example, there are approximately 105,000 students enrolled in the three largest Iowa campuses, and the websites for these schools encourage students to "think about what missing classes will mean" instead of bolstering the democratic process by enabling them to attend often day-long caucus events. Please sign this petition and consider speaking to your professor and not attending class to caucus and vote, no matter who your preferred candidate might be.

This is a petition for colleges in Iowa to cancel classes on Caucus Day, and to encourage students to exercise their right to vote and promote a healthy democracy. We find it disturbing that many students have reported a fear of missing class as a reason not to vote, and that Iowa schools are failing in their responsibility to facilitate young voters' participation in the democratic process. There are approximately 105,000 students enrolled in the three largest Iowa campuses, and the websites for these schools encourage students to "think about what missing classes will mean" instead of bolstering the democratic process by enabling them to attend often day-long caucus events. Please sign this petition and consider speaking to your professor and not attending class to caucus and vote, no matter who your preferred candidate might be.

As a former student and Parent and Community Outreach Liaison for the Madison Metropolitan School District, I have been involved in this school district for over 15 years in some capacity. There exists an atmosphere in the Madison Metropolitan School District that is about maintaining the administration at the expense of student growth through education. The lack of progression combined with the overcommitment to maintaining the administration, which has not upheld educational standards, is atrocious. The graduation rate for black and brown students is at 50%, and yet the administration has been allowed to continue on contract for over 10 years. I saw students physically assaulted by a security guard and other student incidents that were disregarded. It is clear that MMSD only cares about maintaining the current administration and status quo versus upholding their agreement to be responsible for student learning and growth.

No 22-year-old should have to enter the real world already in a virtual debtors' prison. 43 MILLION AMERICANS are $1.3 TRILLION in debt because of student loans, and that amount increases by $3,000 every second. This is cruel and no other democracy pays for college like we do. Let's ACTUALLY make America great again!

African American, Caribbean and Hispanic Children are being victimized by greedy corporations and entities. They are having their right to education stolen from them. My daughter's school has been targeted by a greedy corrupt entity that is evicting them June 30, 2016.

I care about the future of our children and their children and this country's economic survival. Without this, students will pay for 20 years and can't contribute to society.