A sea of MTI red in the Assembly parlor. (photo courtesy of Rebecca Kemble)

The last locker has been cleaned out, the last grade entered into the computer, and teachers have locked their classroom doors for the summer. In the ever changing Wisconsin way, teachers kicked off their summer break at the State Capitol. State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Evers and legislators who support public education held a press conference in the Assembly parlor surrounded by a sea of MTI red. The purpose of this press conference was to inform citizens about the drastic proposals in the state budget and to ask other legislators to take a stand for the state of Wisconsin.

Chris Larson gives his opening remarks. (photo courtesy of Michele Ritt, MTI)

Senator Chris Larson opened the press conference and immediately made it clear that this budget takes aim at the middle class. In this budget, Governor Walker has rejected federally funded Medicaid expansion and will in effect kick 88,000 people off of Badger Care. In addition, the budget calls for statewide expansion of private school vouchers which channel public dollars to private, unaccountable schools. Income taxes are to be cut by $650 million, the majority of these tax breaks geared toward the wealthy. The harmful reaches of the budget also extends to the gutting of our unemployment system and a bail “bondsmen program” which allows corporations to profit off of people in our judicial system. It is no wonder that Senator Larson made a request for one more senator to stand up and be “an agent of moderation.”

Superintendent Evers addresses the crowd. (photo courtesy of Michele Ritt, MTI)

Evers opened his speech with a reminder that our public schools are currently among the best in the country. However, historic cuts to our public education system would come at a significant cost. Evers also shed light onto the significance of people being able to include private school tuition as a tax write off under this new budget. Evers concluded that even if he was a billionaire, which he joked was a title he was nowhere near, then he could get a tax break for sending his students to private school. This attack on public education is a threat to the “core of our democracy.”

Also among the pro-education legislators was Senator Lehman from Racine, Wisconsin. Racine is an area in the state that currently has the voucher program. Lehman confidently asserted that this model was not working. Not only are the models in Milwaukee and Racine not working, the voucher system does not have constiuency support. Representative Sondy Pope-Roberts stood and reported that not a single person she has talked to has asked for statewide expansion of the voucher program. MMSD School Board Vice-President, Arlene Silveira, read a letter of opposition from Madison’s new Superintendent Cheatham which also mentioned the lack of support for vouchers in the community.

MMSD School Board VP, Arlene Silveira, reads a statement for Superintendent Cheatham. (photo courtesy of Michele Ritt, MTI)

The Superintendent of Baraboo schools, Crystal Ritzenhaler, echoed these concerns for rural districts. Their schools are making gains on closing achievement gaps and bringing up student achievement. She explained the need to continue funding the schools, especially at a time when 50% of her teachers are new and inexperienced. Training and professional development needs are on the increase due to a younger staff. Her remedy was to remove voucher expansion from the budget and increase the per pupil budget by $200. This proposal was met positively by applause in the parlor.

The audience energy increased when a spectator posed a question about creating two separate and unequal school systems. Milwaukee Private Schools are currently capitalizing on the draining of our public schools. Their advertisements promote art, music, and other essential experiences that the public schools are having an increasingly difficult time funding. The audience member explained that with private school vouchers we are creating one system of private, wealthy schools and another system of public, underfunded schools. In doing so, we are feeding the disparities that are already present in our society between the wealthy and the struggling and in doing so are going against the democratic ideal of a free, quality public education for all.

The budget will be taken up by the Assembly tomorrow morning and will likely be voted on by Wednesday. This means that the Senate could take up the budget as early as Thursday. Now is the time to contact all legislators and make a final plea for public education, Badger Care, and our middle class.

Many of our legislators have continued to make requests for proper hearings and public testimony to make the lack of public support for these budget items obvious and to add transparency to this process. Opponents of this budget share an ongoing concern that once the budget is passed in the Assembly, it will get pushed quickly through the Senate without enough attention spent on debate and consideration of amendments.

Larson stated that we are “rolling out the red carpet” for those who would like to show their support of public education by opposing the controversial components of this drastic budget. The future of Wisconsin public schools depend on other legislators stepping up and doing what is right for our state. After all, as Representative Peter Barca so eloquently asked, “At a time of surplus, if we won’t invest in our public schools, when will we?”

Representative Peter Barca takes the podium. (photo courtesy Michele Ritt, MTI)

The Upham Woods sign, always a welcome sight.

Ask a former Sennett Student what their most memorable experience was in middle school and they will undoubtedly give you two words – Upham Woods. Their enthusiasm is genuine. Lifelong memories are created from the time they take that final turn off County Highway N into the parking lot until the moment their tired arms reload the school buses. Upham Woods is not just a field trip, it is a formative journey.

Students spend three days at Upham Woods with environmental education as a focus. Their teachers instruct them in archery, canoeing, camping skills, aquatic life, and crafts. Students are also led in team challenges, such as safety catches and taken on hikes where they might find themselves cheering their classmates on as they squeeze through caves. During recreation time, laughter can be heard as students work to capture the other team’s flag or sit on an uncooperative balloon in a team relay. Running, investigating, and playing while learning is what makes outdoor education a success.

With all that learning, students need frequent refueling at Upham Woods. Each meal is an event in itself. Some students arrive to the meal early with a designated job of either “hopper” or “scraper.” Surprisingly, this is done without mumbles or groans. It is an important part of being in the Upham community. “Hoppers” and “scrapers” are the hosts of the dinners and listen carefully to their duties before everyone else files into the cafeteria. Hats and bandannas are hung neatly in the hallway upon entrance and students seat themselves. All meals begin with appreciations. Students stand to give praise to others for being supportive, succeeding in a challenge, or for being a good sport. These appreciations are given some time to sink in during the moment of silence that follows. As the meal gets officially under way, students can be seen passing dishes of food around, striking up conversation, and practicing their table manners. “Hoppers” get up and get the food to be served, serving others before they get a chance to eat. When it comes time to clean up, dishes are stacked and our “scrapers” are armed with rubber spatulas that are their namesake. This “family style” eating brings diners even closer together.

Each night ends with a campfire in the lodge, where student leaders amp up the participation by leading their peers in song, teachers put on skits that make them look quite ridiculous, and stories are told. The second campfire night undoubtedly leads to tears as students participate in a candlelight ceremony. One by one students light a candle and tell their story about how Upham Woods has changed them and given them refuge. Students talk about how they hung out and got to know people in their class in a new way, a way that couldn’t have happened back at school. New friendships were formed and old ones strengthened. Students are just different at Upham Woods, more open, accepting – more themselves.

I will never forget my first candlelight ceremony. It had been my first year teaching and it had been a trying one. I had replaced a strong, African American teacher who is now one of my heroes. However, taking over her classroom meant that I had my young, inexperienced hands full. The kids had tested me at every turn, yet one by one, they got up and gave eloquent recollections of not only Upham Woods, but their school year. Many candles were lit with apologies for the hard time they had given me. One of my Latino boys who hid his books and only turned in his homework secretly, stood up to speak. His words are engraved in my memory, “The thing about Ms. Vieth is that she has heart. You can hear how much she cares in her voice with everything she says.” At that point, I was the one crying. My students had acted so tough all year. Until that moment, I had not realized that I had gotten through.

It is the spirit of Upham Woods that makes this trip so important. It couldn’t be done without the teachers. Prior to Upham Woods, Sennett teachers and parents work selling concessions to bring down the cost of Upham Woods. With over 60% of our population on free and reduced lunch, scholarships are necessary. Teachers write letters to obtain scholarships and students even participate in some events, like Scoopie Night at an area Culver’s.

During the trip, teachers spend time away from their families to be with their students. Some staff, including our Learning Coordinator, stay up at Upham Woods from Monday through Friday to ensure that everything runs smoothly. And when it comes down to it, the staff who go to Upham Woods work hard to ensure a successful trip. One Sennett teacher describes her day as follows, “On Tuesday I was awake and talking with students from 6 AM until 1:00 AM the following day (19 hours without a break). After I fell asleep at 1:00 AM, I was awoken 2 hours later (3 AM) to help a student who had wet herself. I am not trying to brag; I amazed even myself that I could give for this long straight.” While it is truly the marathon of field trips, every minute is worth it.

Students return to Sennett with what staff refer to as the “Upham Glow.” They have learned a lot about each other and a lot about life from the trip. There is a new sense of camaraderie and a new way of being together as a class. There are stories of wildlife they viewed, campfires started without a match, amazing accomplishments, and hysterical failures. The rainy days or frozen fingers are soon forgotten as they seek out a new friend at lunch to reminisce. Upham Woods puts learning where your heart is.

Dean Loumos, an advocate for our public schools

Dean Loumos is the best candidate for Madison School Board Seat 3. This is a unique time for our schools. Budget cuts over the past 20 years continue to take their toll and affect services to our students. Teachers have to do more with less and must defend public education in the process. The proposed expansion of public school vouchers is evidence of further assault on our public education system. These issues make the outcome of our April 2nd Madison School Board election even more critical.

Dean has a long standing history of making changes within our Madison schools. His ten years of teaching experience included working with some of our most challenging populations. Three of these years were spent teaching at La Follette High’s “school within a school” alternative program. Dean’s seventeen years as the executive director of Housing Initiatives, Inc. show that Dean understands how to work within our community on important topics such as poverty, health, and homelessness. His experience in finding creative solutions and forming community partnerships will be an asset to our district.

Dean will be a strong advocate for improving our schools while keeping them public and accessible to all. While his opponent has stated that his response supporting publicly funded, private school vouchers on a January 2013 questionnaire was a mistake, Dean’s own stances and actions have stood the true test of time. Join me in voting for Dean Loumos on April 2nd.

Me, as a child, at Grandma’s farm.

My son, Cody, continuing the tradition at Grandma’s farm.

I can’t ruminate on the United States Postal Service (USPS) without also conjuring up happy childhood memories. Having grown up in a small rural town in Wisconsin, the postman was more than a familiar face; he was friendly and generous.  My own motivation for returning to the mailbox again and again was to keep in touch with my grandmother who lived on a farm a couple of hours away. It was pure magic. At the time, she didn’t even have a street name, yet the letters still found their way to “Rural Route 4.” No stamp? No problem. I would simply scotch tape two dimes to the empty place where a stamp should be. Somehow, my postman would perform a bit of postal alchemy and my envelope would safely find its way to Grandma’s farm.

On February 6th, Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe made a startling announcement. The plan for “saving” the postal service was to close 200 additional processing plants (200 were closed total in the previous six years) and put a stop to Saturday delivery as of August 12th, 2013.

However, these plans were stymied.  Currently, Saturday delivery cannot be stopped without an act of Congress. On March 21st, The House of Representatives approved a continuing resolution (CR) that maintains six day delivery. Amendment 68, proposed by Senator Tom Coburn (R-OK) would have removed the six day delivery language from the CR. However,  this did not come up for a vote. Some legislators claim that the wording in the current legislation is vague and, in spite of Congress’ resolution, are asking to move forward with a plan to limit or end Saturday deliveries.

Congressman, Mark Pocan (D-WI), co-sponsor of H.R. 630

Ironically, it was Congress that got us to this point in the first place. In 2006, Congress implemented a requirement for the postal service to set aside money to pay for the its retiree’s benefits for the next 75 years. This pre-funding of the benefits was to be done in the course of just ten years. Since 2007, this has cost the postal service $32 billion dollars.

In spite of this financial hardship, the post office has surplus funds available, but they are currently unable to access these funds to repay their debt. Between the years of 2007 and 2010, the operational profit of the USPS was $611 million. In fact, since 1982, the USPS had not directly accepted any tax payer dollars. The only exception to this is the subsidy that pays for the costs to send voting materials overseas or to voters with disabilities. The USPS has relied solely on the sale of stamps and services as its primary funding source.

These are services that many seem to take for granted, but that are accessible across this country. Many rural areas rely more heavily on the postal services for goods and services. The postal service does not discriminate; a 44 cent stamp can reach any household in the United States. Six days a week, the postal service delivers thank you notes, letters from loved ones overseas, and prescription medication. It does so at a price that is remarkable low compared to other non-subsidized postal services worldwide. According to a British study, the USPS is also rated first for efficiency. Remarkably, it successfully delivers 160 billion pieces of mail per year.

Dropping Saturday delivery and continuing to close processing plants could be the beginning of the end for the United States Postal Service. In addition to jobs being lost, this would also cause disruption to the system and a slowing of delivery. Good business people know that limiting services turns away customers. Slowing down our postal service is yet another push toward privatization of services, a push that has become all to familiar to workers in many different fields across the United States.

Citizens and legislators have begun pushing back. Bill  H.R. 630 (S. 316), The Postal Service Protection Act of 2013, was recently introduced in an effort to preserve and strengthen the postal service. In this piece of legislation, Representative Peter DeFazio (D-OR) goes a step beyond maintaining Saturday delivery and delves into criteria for closing postal facilities, authorizes use of the surplus funds for debt repayment, authorizes the expansion of services, and eliminates the criteria of pre-funding health benefits.

There has also been Solidarity found in supporting postal workers. This was evident on March 24th, the Postal Service Day of Action, when SCFL president, Kevin Gundlach, took the megaphone. The crowd cheered with him as he bellowed, “An Injury to One is an Injury to All.” Other area leaders such as John Nichols, U.S. Representative Mark Pocan (co-sponsor of H.R. 630), Brian Austin, and John ‘Sly’ Sylvester braved the cold to deliver stirring speeches about the importance of supporting and strengthening our postal service. From California to Tennessee, from Wisconsin to New Jersey, demonstrations of support took place across the country.

During the 2011 Wisconsin Uprising, the National Association of Letter Carriers stood alongside teachers, iron workers, electricians, police officers, and other private and public sector workers from all walks of life. Now, it is time to stand with them. Take action now to save six day delivery and in effect the United States Postal Service. And next time you turn on the computer to shoot out an email to your grandma, brother, sister, or friend, consider grabbing an envelope instead. Not only will that support the USPS, it will also make someone run to the mailbox and smile.

Take Action

Write to your legislators in support of 6 day mail delivery.

Sign the petition to support H.R. 630

Photo Courtesy of Erin Proctor, Special Education Assistant and member of Madison Teachers, Inc.

For the first ten years of my teaching career, I thought teaching and voting were enough. I was doing what I loved and I was fulfilling my civic duty. I will never forget the day that all of this changed. It was February 11^th, 2011. Like clockwork, a student brought in my classroom copy of the Wisconsin State Journal and set it on the table beside me. As I was saying my “good mornings” to my class, I picked it up and read the headline, “Walker to propose stripping collective bargaining rights from state workers.” I looked again, assuming that I had misread the title. I carefully set the paper back down and looked out at the hopeful faces of my students. I was now fully awake and I knew the protection of these students had to extend beyond the walls of my classroom.

The action taken by Wisconsin’s Governor Walker in Act 10 forever changed my life. The following weeks were filled with protests, public hearings, and nights spent at the Wisconsin State Capitol. In the months that followed, I would knock on over a thousand doors throughout the state to assist with the Senate recall campaigns. In passing, I heard female leaders like Kathleen Falk and Tammy Baldwin promote Emerge as a powerful training program, but I saw my place at the doors, having one-on-one conversations with the people of the state I love.

Photo Courtesy of Erin Proctor, MTI

By August of 2011, I was completely engaged in politics. That summer, when I wasn’t on a road trip with area activists, I would stop by the phone banks at Madison’s LaborTemple. I would research the candidate I was making calls for and locate the district on the map before donning a headset. One evening, I was told that we would be making calls for Emerge graduate, Jessica King, who was working to unseat Senator Randy Hopper. When I read her bio, I was inspired. Jessica King’s life had been anything but typical. She had overcome many obstacles including becoming a ward of the state at a young age and putting herself through school. In addition to feeling inspired, I felt validated. I saw a piece of myself in Senator Jessica King’s story. Perhaps my own life experiences could some day empower others.

It was at a DaneCounty Board meeting when I finally found my voice in politics. The budget was up for discussion and I was one of many citizens there to give testimony. There were services on the chopping block that had helped me as a teen and as a young adult. These were services I wanted to protect for my students’ families, yet I was nervous getting up in front of a room that was packed with hundreds of people. I was wearing my bright red Madison Teachers, Inc. (MTI) Union T-shirt as a symbol, but also to boost my confidence. Once in front of the Board, I spoke my truth. I shared pieces of myself and my virtues with complete strangers. I did this to preserve the path I had taken and strengthen it for others. As I stopped talking and turned to go back to my seat, an audience member yelled out, “Go MTI!” I was taken aback by a brief showering of applause. The “me” from a year ago would not have been standing in this spot. Again, my own path had shifted.

Proudly standing with my Emerge sister, Kati Walsh, and Representative Melissa Sargent

Months later, I found myself at a local political fundraiser. I had accepted the invitation out of curiosity; this was a world that was new to me. I smiled and greeted people, but felt largely out of place. A friend of mine turned to introduce me to Emerge graduate and DaneCounty Supervisor (now state Assembly person), Dianne Hesselbein. An amazing thing happened, catching me completely off guard. She didn’t need the introduction. Supervisor Hesselbein shook my hand with a genuine smile and said, “I remember you. You spoke at the DaneCounty Board budget meeting.” She went on to explain that my words had moved her. This moment made me give Emerge a second thought. Perhaps, there was a larger forum for my voice and my passion for issues that affect our community.

As I pondered Emerge, I stayed engaged. I spoke at School Board Meetings and for the Chicago Teachers Union when they were out on strike. I worked on political campaigns, spoke on the radio, and began my own blog. All of this was fulfilling, but the idea of Emerge kept surfacing in conversations, followed by assertions of, “you should run for office.” I turned to people I trusted, like Emerge graduate and State Assembly person, Melissa Sargent. With each person I talked to, my resolve heightened.

Now, I am officially a member of Emerge Wisconsin’s Class of 2013. I know that other great women, many of them mentioned in this blog, paved the way so that I can stand where I do today. Walking into my Emerge classroom on the weekend, I see the power and potential in each of my Emerge sisters. And when they smile and welcome me into the group, I now see that same potential in myself.

Photo Courtesy of Erin Proctor, Special Education Assistant, Madison Teachers, Inc.

On February 11^th, 2011, teachers across this state received startling news. The Wisconsin State Journal headline on this date read, “Walker to propose stripping collective bargaining rights from state workers.” Just a little more than two years later, daily headlines show signs of further turbulence. Governor Walker’s current budget proposal includes the expansion of taxpayer-funded, private school vouchers to several districts in Wisconsin including Madison. The scope of the latest attack is not limited to schools, but extends to every student, family, labor Union, and community. It is an attack on the prosperity and well-being of the state of Wisconsin.

Our Schools

Our public schools have spent the last two decades doing more with less. Kerry Motoviloff (Madison Teachers, Inc. president) explains, “Teachers have been advocating for and offering creative responses and programming ideas for the many and complex issues we face daily in the schools. Simply put, they have not been funded.”

Both the Kenosha Unified Board of Education and the Madison Board of Education passed resolutions against voucher expansion. These resolutions lay out the damaging effect that vouchers have on our public schools. The unanimously passed resolution by the Madison Board decrees, “the implementation of a voucher program that takes any financial resources away from public schools is unacceptable.”

Our Students

Voucher programs have not raised student achievement. In fact, because of lack of accountability and necessary measures of progress, charter schools and other private voucher schools are less likely to provide students with complete school experiences that serve the students’ needs.

According to John Wedge (Director, Capital Area Uniserv North, WEAC), “Voucher supporters say their goal is providing successful options, but there is no evidence to back them up. Studies consistently show that students in voucher schools perform about the same or below their public school peers. Accountability should be the first priority for students.” He follows up with a critical question, “How does it benefit Wisconsin’s students to pour nearly $100 million in additional tax dollars to fund private schools that the Governor has himself admitted are unaccountable?”

Voucher schools are also less likely to provide students with experiences that focus on the arts and kinesthetic learning. According to a report by the nonpartisan group, Public Policy Forum, one-third of schools in Milwaukee’s voucher programs do not have art, music, or gym classes.

Tracy Hedman introduces her husband Peder and son Cyril, a 3rd grader at Parkway Elementary School in the Glendale-River Hills School District. Cyril has Down Syndrom. -Photo courtesy of Rebecca Kemble

The Governor has also proposed $21 million for special needs vouchers. This money can be handed out to any student legally receiving special educations services, regardless of their family’s income. “Special needs vouchers are a false choice for parents of children with disabilities,” explains Lisa Pugh, an MMSD parent. “Not only do parents lose essential rights to a quality education – like the right to qualified staff, therapies and assistive technology- but this proposal is extremely harmful to local public schools. We know voucher schools will not be equipped to educate students with the most significant disabilities who will remain in public schools that are further drained of resources.”

Voucher schools do not operate under the same rules and guidelines as our public schools. MMSD parent, Anna Moffit understands this difference. “Although my son is not able to share with me how his day goes at school, I know that when he is in his public school there are legal protections and a constitutional guarantee that he must receive a free and appropriate public education. This promise or protection does not exist in a private or parochial school. Under the special needs voucher plan, our son’s only “school choice” is to keep his constitutional rights or forfeit them for a reduced tuition at a private school.”

Charter and private Voucher schools can reject special-needs voucher students or students who do not meet their academic or behavioral criteria. In this way, the students with the most significant needs are turned away and funneled back into our public school system.

The students most likely to benefit from an expanded voucher system are those who are already enrolled in a private school. When vouchers were expanded to Racine, almost half of the students who accepted public money for a private education were those who were already attending a private school.

Our Community

According to Board of Education candidate, Thomas J Mertz, “Vouchers remove public control and destroy the very idea of the common, as in ‘common schools’ and ‘the common good.’ This is the ideological purpose.” It is a purpose that has ramifications in our community, a community that relies on our public schools to provide knowledgeable citizens and a skilled workforce.

Photo Courtesy of Rebecca Kemble

Our public tax dollars are earmarked for this purpose, because our public schools provide a service for the betterment of our community. Not only would the expansion of vouchers channel public money to private schools, it could undoubtedly increase our taxes. The Madison School Board laid out the numbers, using Madison as an example, in a recent statement.

“If the Governor’s proposal had been in effect this year and 50 students from Madison schools had transferred to private schools using vouchers, the private schools would have received between $7,000 and $8,000 per student, but Madison’s state aid would have decreased by about $900,000, or nearly $18,000 for each of the 50 voucher students. To avoid cuts in programming, our property taxes would have to go up in order to pay for parents to send their children to private schools.”

Wisconsin has a long tradition of excellence in education. Its graduation rate is second in the nation. An investment in our public schools is an investment in our community as students become business owners, workers, and local leaders.

Our Unions

Public voucher advocates do not simply argue for vouchers, but they argue against Labor Unions. In a recent Capital Times article, Kevin Chavous, executive counsel for the American Federation of Children, declares that “the political arm of the teachers union is self-protecting.” The organization Chavous speaks for is strongly pro-school choice and has contributed heavily to Wisconsin politicians. Claims like this are dangerous to all Unions. This anti-Union sentiment creates a false dichotomy in which the voice of Labor is pitted against the greater good. Chavous ignores the discernable fact that teachers Unions are democratically run by the teachers themselves, whose obvious goal is to create first-rate public schools that serve all of our students. Allowing teacher Unions to be the scapegoat, moves us farther away from the true mission of all Labor Unions, to create better working and learning conditions for all segments of our society.

Our Future

Two years ago at a public hearing, former teacher and current School Board member, Marjorie Passman painted a compelling choice for the future of public education. Our future could include “a mass of private Voucher Schools filled with uncredentialed teachers and staff, unrestricted in curriculum and educational philosophy,” while those turned away from Voucher Schools “return to the dying embers of our public schools that have had essential funding drained from them.” In this system, you would have “the poor paying for the rich to attend private school.” Or, by investing in our public schools, we could have the alternative – schools that “unify a diverse population” and “improve social conditions.” For public school advocates everywhere, the choice is obvious. A stance against voucher programs is an investment in our public schools, our students, and our community.

By Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn

As we mark the 40 year anniversary of Roe versus Wade, I am reminded of how easy it is to become hyper-focused on our own slice of the globe. Yet, while turning the pages of Half the Sky, I am awakened to the reality of how important it is to focus on women’s rights globally. The facts presented in this book are a wake up call to women activists everywhere. “As many infant girls die every week in China as protesters died in the one incident at Tiananmen” (pg. xiv). At this fact, I am struck by the injustice and saddened by my own lack of knowledge on the subject. In the words of Martin Luther King, Jr., “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” Babies are dying, specifically female babies, because they don’t receive equal medical care. As I turn the page, my sadness turns to outrage.

Authors Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn have made their life out of fighting oppression through spreading truth in print. Half the Sky tells the story of women all over the globe who are not only fighting for power, but are fighting for their lives.

The book opens with the startling story of Meena, an Indian Muslin, who was kidnapped and trafficked at age nine. “I wasn’t even allowed to cry,” Meena remembers. “If even one tear fell, they would beat me. I used to think that it was better to die than to live like this” (pg. 5). Yet, live she did and the world is better for it. Meena is now a community organizer in Forbesgunge, Bihar. Meena works with other parents to advocate for educating their daughters and not fall into the trap of prostitution.

Education is a central theme in Half the Sky, with an emphasis on empowering local women to be the agent of change in their communities. The book highlights women like Mukhtar Mai who was bold enough to report her rape, without bowing to the threat of humiliation commonplace in her Punjab village. When offered financial compensation from Pakistani President, Pervez Musharraf, Mukhtar used the money to create a school in her village. At this school, messages against young marriages and abuse are commonplace. Mukhtar believes that the way to change a society is to educate young men and women.

When Kristof and WuDunn tell first-hand accounts, the result is numbing. In Chapter 7, Why Do Women Die in Childbirth, the authors are confronted with maternal mortality. Prudence received no prenatal care and arrived at a hospital after her birthing attendant “jumped up and down” on her stomach because her cervix was obstructed. When they encountered Prudence at the hospital, she had been left untreated in the hospital for three days. Prudence was being denied an emergency cesarean, because her family was refusing to pay the $100 for surgery. Kristof not only agreed to pay the remaining fee, but donated his own blood for a transfusion. Kristof and WuDunn eagerly awaited the results, but none came. The doctor had gone home for the night, leaving Prudence’s surgery for the next day, a careless act that would end in fatality.

With the heartbreak comes hope. Half the Sky repeatedly breaks a reader down and masterfully inserts a call to action into the empty space. And some of the advice is as shocking as the statistics. “One of the most cost-effective ways to increase school attendance is to deworm students” (pg. 171).  ”Another tantalizingly simple way to boost girls’ education is to iodize salt” (pg. 172). Heroines are also contained in the pages, such as Edna Adan who opens a maternity hospital in war-torn Somaliland and Jane Roberts whose noble goal is to get 34 million people to each donate $1 to the United Nations Population Fund.

Half the Sky winds its way through issues affecting women worldwide, from trafficking to maternal care to misogyny.  Accompanying each startling story or statistic is an equally strong message of hope and change. Authors Kristof and WuDunn educate and inspire their readers to prompt global changes in the treatment of women. The book fittingly concludes with Four Steps You Can Take in the Next Ten Minutes.

Half the Sky is not just a “must read.” It is an inspiring call to action.

Related Links

Global Giving: donations to grassroots projects

Plan International: sponsor a girl or a woman

Email updates via www.womensenews.org

Care Action Network

TED talk with Sheryl WuDunn

Half the Sky at Amazon.com

Nicholas Kristof’s blog

Film: Half the Sky (note, the film covers different stories from the book)

Snow Day Photo: Courtesy of Kati Walsh

My first snow day of the season began with a phone call just before midnight. Having an adult-child in the house frequently means answering the phone in my sleep. This night, it meant putting on my snow boots, shoveling out my car, and trekking out to retrieve him so that he would not endanger his life on treacherous roads. Anyone who knows me knows that I will do anything for my son. However, this didn’t prevent me from composing a lecture en route.

As I pulled up in front of the address in my phone, my headlights shone on a series of snowballs and laughter. The car doors opened and not one, but three young gentleman jumped into the car. My rehearsed lecture was shortened to, “Seriously!?” Six eyeballs pleaded with me as I learned that one adult-child needed a ride home and another needed a place to sleep for the night.  As my son pled their case, I was convinced that he must have been either a lawyer or a social worker in another lifetime. I pulled away and decided to make the best of it by making conversation with the new arrivals. Of course, my conversation turned quickly to education.

I learned a lot in my short, snowy drive. My son’s friend, in this post referred to as Devin, was currently enrolled in Madison Area Technical College’s (MATC) High School Equivalency Program after dropping out of a local high school. Unfortunately, the story was one I had heard before. He hadn’t bought into his high school education. He had begun skipping school and found it impossible to keep up. At the time, Devin hadn’t seen himself as a learner and didn’t relate to others.

But, what really caught my attention was what he saw as the defining moment in his decision to walk away from school. He explained that he had been caught up in a pattern of skipping classes, but he had gotten up one morning and decided to turn things around. On his way to class, he was greeted by a teacher in the hallway. She asked him where he was going and his reply was, “I’m going to class.” Aware of his truancy issues, Devin remembered the teacher smiling and saying, “You’re not going to class.” He felt his efforts were being met with disbelief. So, Devin got angry, swore at the teacher, and walked out the door. He says that at the time, he thought that this would hurt the teacher, that he would save face. Now older and more mature, he sees that this action only hurt him. By attending MATC, Devin is now planning on getting his future back. He understands the need for an education.

Teachers have an impact on their students. For this impact to be positive, they first need to meet the students where they are. The teacher that day did not know where Devin was, or she clearly wouldn’t have made light of his efforts to get himself to class. Our high schools have gotten to be so big that too many students are falling through the cracks. So much so, that the Wisconsin State Journal recently reported one out of four black students are chronically absent from high school in the Madison Metropolitan School District (MMSD). We need to make some changes; the following is where we should begin.

Stop Blaming Teachers (button by Northern Sun) 

Stop Blaming Teachers

Teaching is a profession grounded in self-reflection. Teachers go into this career to make a difference in the lives of children and a difference in larger society. However, the current political climate has made this self-reflection extremely challenging. Due to privatization, the expansion of school voucher programs and charter schools, attacks on teacher unions, and a focus on standardized testing as a means of evaluation, teachers find themselves increasingly playing defense.  To honestly evaluate and criticize ones work takes a safe environment and a healthy dose of courage. While teachers continue to take these risks, decreased morale and a hostile political environment act as barriers to change.

Create Small Learning Environments

With 1 out of 4 black students chronically absent in MMSD and increasing alarm over the achievement gap, it is obvious that teachers must employ culturally relevant teaching practices. These practices begin with getting to know your students and their families – a practice that necessitates smaller learning environments. According to UW professor, Alice Uldvari-Solner, “Teachers who uphold the dynamics of culturally relevant pedagogy are practicing inclusive education as they impart influential messages that each child brings value to the classroom and that each child is powerful in directing his or her own achievement.” (Creating an Inclusive School, pg. 100)

Unfortunately, as our students grow, the learning environments become larger and less-personalized. A primary teacher spending most of the day in a SAGE school in a classroom of 14 can get to know his students quite well. Contrast that to a high school teacher teaching five sections of 30+ kids. Individualizing the education process is seemingly impossible. Students need to feel a sense of worth and belonging. Reestablishing smaller learning communities that focus on relationships and team-work will create safety nets for students feeling lost in the crowd.

The traditional high school structure arose at a time when many people would seek jobs in labor or agriculture rather than secondary education. The first high schools were built in wealthy areas. The high school model was created in an environment that meant to cater to the upper class and academically elite. At the start of the 20th century, it became commonplace for high schools to have entrance exams as a means of weeding students out. The majority of students were expected to take on a trade after completion of junior high. Simply put, the traditional high school model was not created to serve all learners.

By the mid 1900′s, advances in science and technology brought about the need for a larger, more skilled work force. This made attending high school a necessity. Comprehensive high schools became common, which gave more students access to a free education. Yet, the original structure of the high school itself changed very little over time.

Honor All Learners

We live in an increasingly diverse society; it is one aspect of our societal wealth. With groupings that span ages and abilities, students are opened up to a wide array of opinions, ideas, and perspectives. This sort of learning environment mirrors the possibilities in our communities and work places. We grow through exploring our differences and carefully examining our own thinking. This is what it means to be a student in the 21st century, or at least it is what it should mean.

Exhaust Assembly (in the ilving room?)

We have a diversity of learners, but the only pathway that is typically valued in our schools is a one size fits all, academic course sequence. Students who are tactile learners, good with their hands, and thrive in courses such as metal work or automotives are only offered these courses as electives. Some students who could be drawn in by careers and internships in the trades get lost in the mix, because their pathway is less clear and less valued in a traditional setting. These students rarely see the connection between their academic coursework and these “electives” and honors courses tend not to be offered in their own area of strength.

Sadly, tracking still exists in our schools. We’ve simply renamed it as AP or Honors coursework. MMSD students enrolled in honors courses are on an entirely different track from their peers. When my former students come back and talk about their high school experiences, this is obvious. Those in honors courses face rigor and feel challenged. They see themselves as learners and are surrounded by peers with a similar focus on academics. On the other hand, students not enrolled in honors courses share their frustration with boredom, isolation, feeling undervalued, or are distracted by the misbehavior of their peers. If we are truly to honor all learners, why do we continue to only nurture some of them as honor students?

Engage Our Community

Schools do not operate in isolation. Many of our families face homelessness, joblessness, and poverty. Kids spend nearly 55 hours a week watching television, texting, and playing video games. During this time, they are bombarded with negative images which some take on as part of their identity. As time with media increases, the time spent outdoors and with family decreases. Kids arrive at school tired and unavailable for learning after late nights with video games. Even worse, today’s student expects instant gratification and entertainment at the tip of their fingers.

Building Healthy Communities

Whether it is working in a community garden or learning a new skill, students need more opportunities in the community to make a difference and interact with others. It is up to us to combine the efforts of teachers, community centers, families, and area businesses to offer these opportunities.

When a family hurts, the students feel it. It is no longer okay for businesses and community leaders to merely sit on boards and fund initiatives. They must also be a part of decreasing unemployment and homelessness and fighting for all families to earn a living wage. Lifting everyone up to a level of dignity and respect in our community sends a powerful message to students and makes everyone more able to contribute to the education of our youth.

Never Give Up

It is time to stop the cycle of blame. We can blame teachers, society, families, or the students. But this won’t bring us closer to making my New Year’s wish a reality. Each of us must put our best foot forward every day for our kids and for their families. Rather than asking what someone else is or isn’t doing for education, we need to ask ourselves what we have to offer. Solutions only come through hard work, commitment, and dedication. There is nothing more important than educating our youth, building a strong workforce, and creating global citizens. Never give up; children are a lifetime investment.

Links to Further Resources

Principles for Culturally Responsive Teaching

Culturally Responsive Differentiated Teaching Strategies

Schools We Can Envy, by Diane Ravitch

Small Learning Communities in 5 Boston High Schools

In Madison high schools, 1 in 4 black students chronically absent (Wisconsin State Journal)

Parent, Family, Community Involvement in Education

Starting a Community Garden

Please see the bottom of this blog for directions on how to donate to my tuition.

On Christmas day, I anxiously retrieved the envelope waiting for me in my mailbox. My hands trembled with excitement as I immediately sent out my electronic tentacles in search of encouragement. A fellow teacher coached me through the opening of my letter from Emerge Wisconsin. The first word was enough to initiate my celebration, “Congratulations!”

Emerge USA is a Democratic training program for women pursuing a position in an elected, public office. Emerge Wisconsin’s Board of Advisors is a “who’s who” list of many of my own political heroes, such as U.S. Senator Elect Tammy Baldwin, State Senator Lena Taylor, and Former Dane County Executive Kathleen Falk. This is a program that will set me on a course toward my own political candidacy, where it is my dream to widen the scope of my political impact. I am hoping that a few of my readers may be willing to support my future candidacy. While my blog makes my political idealogies fairly obvious, read on for a more complete view of my political platform.

I believe that my experiences with community outreach, education, and environmental issues make me a viable candidate for a future political office. My vision for the city of Madison and the state of Wisconsin includes residents working alongside volunteers, workers, Union, organizations, and businesses to make the city and state a better place for everyone. Teamwork and civic action are necessary to a thriving community. Too many of our residents have become disengaged and have turned away from politics. Because of this, we all lose out. As an active member of our community, I will reach out to everyday citizens and get their input on the issues. In doing so, I will not only gauge the needs and values of our community, but I will also open the lines of communication that will empower others to become involved.

As I’ve been out in the community, knocking on doors and listening to people, I have found many aspirations that we all share. People choose to live here, because they want a quality life for their families. Issues such as safety, equal rights, recreation, the environment, employment, and education are central areas of concern. This is where we can find common ground. My vision for our future is rooted in these issues and the desire to make this a strong community for our families.

Education has always been my passion and it is my primary area of expertise. Our current battles in education are with funding, family involvement, privatization, and achievement gaps. Throughout my teaching career, I have shown the ability to be creative with seeking out donations and funding sources. I have refined my ability to talk with families and seek out parental involvement. My own focus on keeping up to date with culturally relevant teaching practices, reading about other districts’ successes and attempts at narrowing achievement gaps, and being a long-standing member of our school’s Equity Team ensures that I will bring a fresh, knowledgeable perspective to a political office. After all, it is public education that creates our future citizens and protects our city’s future.

Having grown up in Black Earth, Wisconsin and also having spent a lot of time on our family farm, I understand the value our environment plays in the health and well being of our city. This is why I chose Environmental Science as my minor in college. The importance of clean lakes and safe drinking water are obvious, but the residents of Wisconsin also rely on the health of our environment for lifestyle and recreational purposes. Many people use our bike paths to commute and our area parks for relaxation. Fishers, boaters, bird watchers, hikers, and runners seek refuge in our parks and on our waterways. Preserving the environment is also preserving a way of life for our residents.

Many feet make light work.

The Madison area is unique in its diversity of small businesses.  Our state must continue to welcome visitors and businesses that add to our culture and diversity. I believe that we should form partnerships with area businesses and involve them in our community. That will not only bring in business, but it will also bring in employment opportunities and events that will benefit our residents. Community outreach must extend to include area businesses, so that business owners see that the people’s interests coincide with their own.

The foundation of my vision is working together. My ability to listen, advocate for others, and identify where our goals are congruent makes me an ideal candidate for office. As I engage in learning and training through Emerge, I know this vision will morph and grow, but the strength of my ideals will always remain.

Help Fund My Tuition By Donating to Emerge

If you would like to support me on my path to public office, please consider making a donation to help offset my tuition.

Step One: Go to http://www.emergewi.org/ and click on Contribute.  (Checks can also be made out to Emerge Wisconsin and sent to PO Box 2369, Madison, WI 53701.)

Step Two: Email me at KarenVieth4Emerge@gmail.com with your name and donation amount. This is how the funds will be attributed to me.

Emerge is a 527, which means that your contribution is not tax deductible.

I have taught at Sennett Middle School for eleven years, but I never tire of telling people about our amazing, multi-age model. Sennett Middle School has six teaching teams that we call “houses.” Sixth, seventh, and eighth graders make up each homeroom class and they stay with that class for most of their academic classes. Math continues to be taught by grade level, as each year builds on the skills from previous years. Every year in my homeroom, we say goodbye to our eighth graders and welcome in sixth graders to take their place. Building relationships with these sixth graders is the most important part of my job, because it is a relationship that will be the foundation for the next three years of their learning with me. Sennett continues to be a diverse, rigorous environment where relationships are the key to success.

The first question that people generally have upon hearing about Sennett’s model is, “How does that work?” This is generally followed by a lengthy question and answer session. The basic idea is that students belong to one of six “houses” within the school. Each house has four (or sometimes five) homerooms. The students tend to identify themselves by what house or homeroom they are in, because this is the smaller group that they travel with from class to class.  Each homeroom is made up of about 9 sixth graders, 9 seventh graders, and 9 eighth graders. That group stays together for three years, with the exception of the 8th graders moving on to high school and the 6th graders arriving. Once people get over the logistics, the more important question arises. “Why?” In answering this question, I remind myself of why I have chosen to spend my career at Sennett.

Stability. Ask anyone who teaches or is the parent of a middle school age child. Middle school is a special age, because it is a time of transitions. This is true for all students, but even more so for students who are experiencing other types of changes in their lives, such as homelessness or the separation of their family.

Sennett’s multi-age model provides students with continuity. They have an established peer group in their homeroom that stays consistent for three years. Their teaching team also provides them with a sense of stability. Teachers make a strong effort to get to know students as sixth graders and these efforts continue for the three-year period. Neither student nor teacher has to start over every year. Each year builds on the previous year. Students with disabilities also experience a continuity of service, as they not only keep the same teaching team each year, they also have the same case manager.

For students who have challenges learning routines or building relationships, this can have a serious impact. For example, from my experience, a student with autism may take four to six weeks to really feel comfortable with adults or programming as a sixth grader. This same student entering seventh grade will fall right back into the routine of learning from week one.

Relationships. With so much talk of the achievement gap in the school district and larger community, there is a renewed interest in parental involvement. Many parents of struggling students have grown skeptical of the school system. Building relationships with parents takes time and means establishing trust. This too is an effort that teachers at Sennett do not have to start over fresh with each year. In fact, many parents request to have their students in classrooms where they have already defined their relationships with the staff when siblings attended Sennett. In my own classroom, this was evident when more than ten parents made requests last summer to be placed on our teaching team. Once a relationship is formed, it becomes an asset in communicating around even the most difficult situations. Teachers

Inclusion. For students to learn, they must feel safety and belonging. Learning means taking risks, especially if it isn’t coming easy to a student. A multi-age model makes inclusion work. When you have the diversity that exists between sixth graders and eighth graders, differentiation is a necessity. A classroom teacher must look at each individual student, assess their knowledge, and plan their lessons accordingly.

This is very different from a traditional model, where teachers often aim for the middle of the class in hopes of reaching the majority. In these traditional settings, a wide range of abilities still exists, but it is often treated differently, because it isn’t owned as part of the classroom culture. When listening in on curriculum planning at Sennett, you are likely to hear, “But how will Bobby make meaning of this lesson?” or “How will Clarissa be challenged?” In planning for a wider variety of learners, students are less likely to fall through the cracks.

As a part of this inclusive model, where students are able to experience successes and find a place among their diverse peer group, a stronger sense of self-concept is fostered. This may not always be evident from test scores or report card data, but it is obvious in the classroom climate and the daily successes witnessed by the teaching team.

Student Leaders. Prior coming to Sennett, I taught for one year in a traditional middle school. In this setting, eighth graders were at the top of the ladder and the sixth graders clearly at the bottom. Issues of harassment and hazing frequently came from “the top down.” One of the first differences I noticed between this environment and Sennett was the lack of this type of hierarchy. Instead, eighth graders are seen as student leaders and mentors to the sixth graders. Fostering this type of nurturing environment works for kids.

In my classroom, at the end of each year, students write letters to the incoming sixth grade students. Their letters introduce themselves to the incoming students and contain tips to being successful at Sennett. The letters get mailed in the summertime when existing eighth grade students are paired up with an incoming sixth grade “buddy.” Their role with their buddy is to show them around the school, acclimate them to Sennett, and even make sure that they have someone to eat with in the lunchroom. These types of relationships are definitely symbiotic. As the sixth grader gains their footing in the school, the eighth graders gain confidence and leadership skills.

Another example of this can be viewed in my Reading Enrichment course. Currently, seventh and eighth graders are paired up with a sixth grade students to do a book project. As I sit and listen to the students read books around the theme of “Struggles for Justice.” I hear seventh and eighth graders trying to put their own views into context for the sixth grade students. As the sixth graders reflect and question, the seventh and eighth graders are challenged to defend or modify their own ideas. Because of their engagement level in this multi-age project, discipline is not an issue and I find myself free to have meaningful discussions with students and am able to assess their individual comprehension skills.

Teams. Due to the rigor of teaching in a diverse multi-age environment, our team is in a continuous state of collaboration. Our whole team meets once a week to do generally planning and problem-solving. We also meet every other week to problem-solve around individual student needs. In addition, we meet weekly on our various curricular teams. This is a huge time investment, but it pays off in how we work with each other and how we meet the needs of our students. Collaboration is essential to success, because our ideas change and grow as we work together. My teaching team has put in an incredible amount of work to meet the needs of our students and to push ourselves as educators. This type of team-teaching is not possible in systems where educators are separated out by department specialties. Instead, we become specialists in our children and serve up a curriculum to meet their individual needs.

Effectiveness. With a move toward the Common Core State Standards and a plethora of district initiatives, the effectiveness of Sennett’s multi-age model is again under scrutiny. Unfortunately, not all of our strengths can be measured on standardized tests. Currently, the data shows we are neither better nor worse than other Madison middle schools with similar demographics. In fact, when the school report cards are plotted according to poverty level, the relationship is nearly linear.

What we do have is a strongly knit community that is dedicated to our students. We have teachers who advocate for a small group of students whom they get to know well over the course of three years. Even more telling is that we have teachers at Sennett who once attended the school. They were so strongly connected to the model that they could not imagine going on to teach anywhere else. ”I think it really does foster that sense of family,” said former Sennett Principal, Colleen Lodholz in a Madison.com article.  It is an effort to maintain a small learning environment within an increasingly large and complex school district.

Does it work? My former students would argue that it does. As for my current students, the answer may be as simple as the inscription inside one of my Birthday cards.

“Dear Ms. Vieth, I wish you the best birthday you could ever have, and that you spend it with the people that love and care about you. I think that our class is really lucky to have a teacher like you. You’re one of the best teachers I’ve had. You always know how to make something fun, even if it is, say a test. I also love the fact that you give us time to be with groups or to be independent. Well, I hope you have a great birthday!”

The time is right to make our schools more community based and student-centered. I believe that Sennett Middle School’s multi-age model was 37 years ahead of its time.

Related Links:

Promising Practices that Foster Inclusive Education

Critical Issue: Enhancing Learning Through Multiage Grouping

Making Big Schools Seem Small

AMLE Research Summary: Multi-age Grouping

Multi-age Teachers’ Beliefs and Practices

Multi-Age Teaming: A Real-Life Approach to the Middle School

Madison.com: A Sense of Family in Classrooms