To prevent staff cuts at IJLA.

Mounting evidence shows that Navient - a spin off from Sallie Mae - has been ripping off federal student loan borrowers for many years. Yet, the Department of Education continues to reward companies like Sallie Mae/Navient with MULTI-MILLION DOLLAR contracts. Simply put, these corporations get richer as student loan borrowers suffer. Secretary of Education John King needs to hear from as many Americans as possible that it is unacceptable for the Department of Education to be in business with a company that takes unfair advantage of taxpayers, students, members of the military, as well as minority and low-income borrowers. The current contract stipulates that violating federal law is grounds for termination. Sallie Mae/Navient was fined by the federal government $93 million for “unlawfully overcharging” America’s troops and veterans. Obviously, it is time to fire Sallie Mae/Navient- but, the Department of Education won't act without massive public pressure. Tell Secretary King to fire Sallie Mae/Navient!

We are requesting that our elementary schools provide students with at least fifteen to twenty additional minutes of additional unstructured, outdoor playtime each day. Teachers should be included and supported in figuring out how best to implement the recommendations, in order to best support the needs of their students. We support the teachers’ request for less testing and more learning, and we envision that adding recess will fit into those efforts. There has been a marked increase in the past few years of the intensity of children’s emotional needs within our district. This increase has coincided with a push to increase students’ time spent on classroom instruction and on standardized assessments. Increasing instructional time and assessment time have not made a dent in the achievement gap. Meanwhile, research has shown that increasing recess time improves students’ ability to focus on academic tasks, while reducing behavioral issues in the classroom. Children with special needs and children of color receive a much higher proportion of disciplinary action within our district. Providing more recess would be providing a more equitable system.

This is for the future generation of this nation. Yes! I do feel for the students of this nation, including mine. Just reduce the defense spending by 10%.

I have five grandchildren that I care deeply about, and am gravely concerned they, as well as the rest of the children in North Carolina, are being short changed by the only people who can fix what they have done.

To prevent the sabotaging of sick outs.

We are tired of fighting for our jobs every year with this threat of selling us out! If this goes through, next up for outsourcing will be nurses, office help, and before you know it, they will have rent-a-teacher...STOP IT NOW! Too many are working behind the scenes, drawing HUGE salaries that need job re-evaluation. The board needs to PERSONALLY evaluate this situation, they will see all avenues have NOT BEEN PURSUED!!

Five years ago, lawmakers placed a recession-era enrollment cap on Working Connections Child Care. Unless lawmakers act now, families will face a waiting list in just a few months. The last time there was a waiting list, it was terrible for families, providers and employers. Parents like Children's Alliance member Natasha from Bremerton went through it: “In 2011, before my child entered kindergarten, I was constantly scrambling to find child care, while I sat on wait lists for Working Connections or struggled with the paperwork shuffle in the approval process. I used up my “get-out-of-jail-free” cards with my employer. Losing my job because of one more late arrival because my babysitter didn’t show was a very real threat to my family’s stability every day. Washington should not go backward and put parents and kids through that again.” A recent report named Washington one of the states with the highest costs for child care. That makes it hard for families to find care that suits their kids. A waiting list for Working Connections Child Care will make it harder. Please speak up and urge your lawmakers to say NO to a waiting list!

The Bridge Elementary School has had several evacuations due to Gas leaks in the past year, some in extreme weather. As part of the Bridge community, we need a permanent and proper solution on the cause of gas leaks. In addition, the alarm systems should be fixed/replaced so these are working at all times. The safety of our children and staff should be given top priority, and fixes to the heating and alarm systems must be undertaken immediately.

Students across our state deserve to pursue higher education without the looming issue of debt. Wisconsin is 3rd worst in the nation for student debt. This is unacceptable, and we cannot let it continue.

We are asking for your support in an appeal to the Gwinnett Board of Eduction. If SAFETY and EFFICIENCY are truly considered with the Board's stated criteria and goals we are positive this should result in a unanimous decision for at least one of our requests.

Mashpee finally makes progress in addressing decades-old issues and concerns. Are we Mashpee residents going to allow our schools to return to a lackluster state of underachievement, mediocrity and dysfunction?