Many schools in Virginia do not have a licensed nurse to provide safe and ethical medical care. For some Virginia students, school nurses may be the only healthcare resource they have access to. School nurses have the potential to be community health equalizers in the care of Virginia's socioeconomic disadvantaged and disabled child and youth populations. School nurses support and facilitate school inclusion for all students. Public schools could be an economical, common-sense platform for the frontline application of Virginia’s community public health intervention programs coupled with the potential for long-term research. Incorporating a community’s public health approach with school health programs has the possibility to improve health equity and health literacy, target resource application with long-term cost efficiency not only in money but overall improved public health and wellness. My own experience working in a public school setting has been impacted by a lack of medical appreciation and understanding for the role of school nurses. Many of the administrators and school board decision makers do not have a medical background and lack the knowledge base needed to envision the potential of a public health approach/ application to the school health needs. This issue is most apparent in the area of students with disabilities. One of my most important roles is advocating for the federally protected civil rights of students. School nurses are the necessary experts for 504 plans. I truly believe school nurses could help the state of Virginia in reaching its goals for wellness, health equity, and reduction in healthcare cost. An “out of the box" vision for the state of Virginia's school health program could positively impact more than the success of students, but the success of communities. American Academy of Pediatrics Statement https://www.aap.org/en-us/about-the-aap/aap-press-room/Pages/AAP-Policy-Statement-Recommends-Full-Time-Nurse-in-Every-School.aspx?nfstatus=401&nftoken=00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000&nfstatusdescription=ERROR:+No+local+token National Association of School Nurses https://www.nasn.org/PolicyAdvocacy/PositionPapersandReports/NASNPositionStatementsFullView/tabid/462/smid/824/ArticleID/803/Default.aspx https://www.nasn.org/PolicyAdvocacy/PositionPapersandReports/NASNPositionStatementsFullView/tabid/462/smid/824/ArticleID/17/Default.aspx The Center for Health and Health Care in Schools http://www.healthinschools.org/ More Information https://www.facebook.com/schoolnurseforeverychild/

Severe funding cuts would deeply hinder responses to major humanitarian crises, of political, economic, environmental, or societal nature, and terrorist attacks. To cut funding so dramatically during a period of "unprecedented global hunger" is callous and disgraceful. We cannot allow these proposed budget cuts to materialize.

Recently, authorities removed 310 animals from Friends for Life, including the therapy dogs that are owned by the three volunteers that reside there. We, the undersigned, are against the closure of the Friends For Life facility, and support the return of the animals seized.

Rep. Steve King's blatant and dangerous racism cannot be tolerated. Despite his outrageous statements, King is still the Chair of the House Subcommittee on the Constitution and Civil Justice—which oversees constitutional rights, Federal civil rights, ethics in government, and more. Speaker Paul Ryan tried to distance himself from King's statement with light criticism. But critiques are not enough. King is in no way fit to chair the Subcommittee on the Constitution and Civil Justice—or any other committee. This weekend, Rep. Steve King of Iowa tweeted his support for a Dutch nationalist politician saying, "We can't restore our civilization with somebody else's babies." This statement is the latest of King's many racist comments—and he's even doubled down on the statement saying, "I meant exactly what I said." In the same interview, he went further and said, "If we care about our stock, our country, our culture, our civilization—we need to have enough babies to replace ourselves and hopefully grow." Allowing Rep. King to continue to chair the committee further normalizes this terrible brand of racism and hatred. Former KKK leader David Duke and Richard Spencer, another white prominent supremacist, both celebrated and praised King's comment. And as attacks on Muslim, immigrant communities, and communities of color escalate in the wake of Donald Trump's toxic presidential campaign and subsequent Executive Orders, we cannot allow racism and white supremacism to be further normalized. Republican leaders have the ability to remove King from this committee and must do so immediately and send the message that racism and hatred will not be tolerated and rewarded by members of Congress. They must do so immediately.

Thousands of historic Massachusetts law library books are being shredded. In Massachusetts, we have a Constitutional Right to free legal advice, Article 11, of the Massachusetts Constitutional Declaration of Rights, which is guaranteed by the Massachusetts County Law Libraries. These books belong to the Citizens of Massachusetts, and they are being destroyed. They must be protected.

The reinstatement of the Global Gag Rule is a stark example of “evidence-free” policymaking that ignores scientific data, resulting in a policy that will harm women and children around the world and, ultimately, the American people. For more information, see article in New England Journal of Medicine (http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMp1701294). For information on bill, see here: https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/senate-bill/210

According to the most current FBI reports, a white police officer killed an African American individual nearly two times a week in the United States. The Department of Justice has found a pattern of excessive force within a number of major police departments.

The citizens of New Orleans declare a vote of no confidence in the Sewerage and Water Board of New Orleans (SWBNO). Our bills have risen steadily and unreasonably, and our infrastructure and streets have eroded into stagnant pools of disrepair. Meanwhile, the Sewerage and Water Board's customer service is non-existent -- the website is either down or overloaded, contact by phone is virtually impossible, and our issues of record are permanently "under investigation," an empty and meaningless term used by the SWBNO in an attempt to placate customers. Business, as usual, must cease immediately. The citizens of New Orleans demand change!

After repeated representations by supporters of this project, (live and written) we are reacting to repeated attempts at Common Council to sway their decision. Consider this the collective voice of supporters.

While President Trump has lunch with Saudi prince Mohammed bin Salman, [1] children in Yemen are starving to death. Stephen O'Brien, the United Nations' top aid official, has demanded that Yemen's Hodeida port, currently blockaded and attacked by Saudi Arabia, be opened to food imports to avert famine. [2] 53 Members of the House have urged Secretary of State Tillerson "use all U.S. diplomatic tools to help open the Yemeni port of Hodeida to international aid humanitarian aid organizations to allow them to import food, fuel, and medicine into northern Yemen and save the lives of hundreds of thousands of Yemeni children who face starvation." [3] The Trump Administration wants to sell Saudi Arabia weapons that were put on hold by President Obama. Senator Rand Paul [R-KY] and Senator Chris Murphy [D-CT] oppose the sale. "I don't know why we would give them precision-guided munitions that allow them to target civilians more efficiently,” Senator Murphy said. [4] Urge your Representative and Senators to oppose the Saudi arms deal by signing our petition. References: 1. http://money.cnn.com/2017/03/14/news/economy/trump-saudi-deputy-crown-prince-oil-tech-defense/ 2. http://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/usgerc-stephen-o-brien-statement-security-council-missions-yemen-south-sudan-somalia; http://webtv.un.org/search/stephen-obrien-ocha-on-the-humanitarian-situation-in-yemen-somalia-kenya-and-south-sudan-security-council-7897th-meeting/5355321872001 3. http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/join-unreliefchief-bolivia_o?r_by=1135580 4. http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2017/03/congress-showdown-saudi-arms-sales-bombs-yemen.html

NY Times Editorial Observer 3/13/17 by Elizabeth Williamson article, "Want to Keep the President at Bay? Two Consultants Have an Inside Track", describes the lobbying efforts of the 2 former Trump senior advisors, who help companies fend off "tweet risk". Two clients of Avenue Strategies listed in the article are: Scott's Miracle Gro and Community Choice Financial, a payday lender. I have long used Miracle Gro but will no longer. It's time to spring clean, and serve notice on Miracle Gro.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is known for its poor ethical track record and constant abuse of power when it comes to enforcing our nation’s immigration laws. Under the Donald Trump’s Administration, ICE has gone from bad to worse. Now, ICE is actively taking advice from hate groups to shape our nation’s immigration policies. Recently, the Daily Beast reported how two known hate groups, the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) and the Center for Immigration Studies (CIS), are actively conspiring with Immigration Customs Enforcement (ICE) to help craft national immigration policy. FAIR and CIS are known for their ties to white supremacist groups and racist statements, and Donald Trump has already begun implementing some of their most racist proposals, including defunding sanctuary cities, reviving a controversial program that would deputize local police as federal immigration agents, and expediting the deportation of immigrants across the nation. If we want to keep Donald Trump from destroying our American values, then we must pressure federal agencies like ICE to stop meeting with hate groups like FAIR and CIS. Please join with me and demand that ICE stops meeting with known hate groups immediately!