February Legislative Session = January Prep Work

If the session is in February, the legislation is being crafted NOW.  Want to be part of crafting what gets heard?  Testify or communicate your opinion to the appropriate House or Senate Interim Committee, or just e-mail your representatives (so quick & easy to tell them what you think the state should do).  Sound complicated?  Doesn't have to be!  We'll just focus on two issues that we've already discussed here in Activistaland: safe toys and all-day kindergarten:

Safe(r) Toys - 1.23.08 Committee Meeting: Yes, the state is gonna do something. A lot?  Not this year. Seems they'll be prohibiting the sale of recalled toys and other children's items.  'Cause believe it or not, it's voluntary now.  You got it: if a children's product is recalled, the store can still sell it.  So we can't assume that what's on the shelves hasn't been recalled.  Great news, huh?  At least the Consumer Product Safety Commission maintains an up-to-date list (with a search option) on the web.

If this bill passes (likely), in the longer 2009 session they may take it a few steps further.  But we gotta start somewhere.  If you want to share your opinion about this approach, e-mail your Representative before the House Consumer Protection Committee meets on 1.23.08.  If you want to see your comments be part of the written record and distributed to all Committee members at that meeting, send it to the Committee staff.  If we get it together to write a letter, we'll post it here so you can download and send it in, too.  The more of their mamastituents they hear from, the better!

PPS All-day Kindergarten - 1.14.08 Committee Meeting: Four Oregon school superintendents, including PPS's Carole Smith, were asked to testify about all-day kindergarten before the Senate Education & General Government Committee next Monday.  A flyer from PPS says "the legislature is considering potential legislation to resolve legal issues around full-day parent-paid kindergarten." 

The public can also testify at the Committee meeting (shoot, I'm working!), or you can simply share your opinions with committee members or your own Senator.  Alternatively, we could share reader comments with the committee to broaden their understanding of how some parents feel about this topic.  I am always looking for ways to make our dialog here useful in a larger sense (though learning from each other is great in & of itself!).  Names could be removed.  Thoughts?

Curious what else they're working on?  Scroll through the Committee Agendas & see for yourself.

Comments

[Sarah Carlin Ames]

Hi all --

The legislators very much want to hear from parents on full-day kindergarten, and any thoughts you have would be appreciated!

There are fewer than 3,000 kids statewide in full-day, parent-paid kindergarten, and almost half are in Portland Public Schools. So it's tough for some legislators in other towns to understand how much this debate might affect us!

I'm not just writing this as a school district flack (although I am), but also as a mom with my third (and final) child in full-day K in Portland right now! I know two things about full-day K: 1) Max is learning a ton and having a great year with fun activities, journal drawing and writing and a great teacher, and 2) if full-day K weren't an option, my almost-full-time job would be next to impossible, and the fill-in-the-gap daycare not nearly so good (and possibly even MORE expensive).

I think full-day K is a great option for willing parents (and willing school districts -- many in Oregon just don't go for it). . . . I hope the Legislature acts to make sure it continues, for those families who want access to the program at ALL of our elementary schools, not just those with federal anti-poverty funding.

Sarah Carlin Ames
sames@pps.k12.or.us

[Lisa]

You might have seen the article on the all-day kindergarten meeting on today's Oregonian (http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/120037110730280.xml&coll=7). Seems like the paid option will remain for awhile - depsite the apparent illegality (not sure I get the details that allow us to march on with this plan when someoens else in the state says it's illegal - feel free to enlighten me).

And while I can't argue with it because it is SO needed (by me if I weren't sticking with our current child care because of its fabulous schedule for working parents and relatively minor increased cost), I think it just delays the very clear need for the state to cover this cost. They fund kindergartens at 1/2 the cost of the other grades. Come on, guys, it's 2008 - we mamas have been working outside the home for YEARS, and the research on early learning is there, too.

Also, what floors me is the difference across schools in what is offered. As the article notes, at Ainsworth there is ONLY full-day knidergarten (got to pay for it, no 1/2 day option), at other n'hood schools, the 2nd 1/2 day is an option only if enough families sign up. What gives?

Sure seems like where you live has a lot to do with what is offered to you? Another factor to include in the discussion over school choice since schools vary so very much. If they are going to vary (immersion, kindergarten schedules, etc...), then everyone ought to have a chance at the variables...?

PS - I'm not a PPS parent (yet).