My Culture My Lens: July 2024

Monday, July 29, 2024

Reminder - Foundation Aid Hearing on Long Island Tomorrow!

Hi Ashley,

Tomorrow's Foundation Aid hearing will take place on Long Island, July 30, at Weldon E. Howitt Middle School in Farmingdale. Whether you're able to attend in person or comment in writing, we strongly encourage you to participate in these hearings to ensure your voice is heard in this process.

For those attending in person, don't forget to submit your speaker registration form ahead of time. You can use our testimony guide to help quickly prepare what to include in your testimony (available in English and Spanish).

If attending in person isn't possible, you can still participate by submitting your written testimony online. You can also tune into the live hearing online at Rockefeller's livestream. The deadline for written submissions is September 6. Additional resources to assist with your testimony are available on our website.

At last week's hearing in Buffalo, parents and community members passionately voiced their struggles with attending hearings due to long distances and non-traditional work hours, particularly for those in high-need districts. The hearing's low attendance highlighted the exclusion of students and families most affected by these issues, underscoring the urgent need for better placement of these hearings. Ensuring broader participation from those that rely most heavily on a quality public school education is essential. See testimony given by longtime friend of AQE, Stevie Vargas, above.

The Rockefeller Institute's recommendations and final report on changes to the formula will influence Governor Hochul's education budget proposal for the next fiscal year. The Governor has directed the Rockefeller Institute to assess whether the formula is "fiscally sustainable," potentially prioritizing budget concerns over the constitutional commitment to provide a sound basic education for every student. This could result in reduced funding for essential resources, larger class sizes, and fewer support services, directly affecting the quality of education that students receive.

For all hearings, stakeholder testimony begins at 2pm, and public comment for registered speakers will begin at 5:30pm. Upcoming hearing dates and locations are as follows (click through the hyperlinks for the livestreams):

July 30: Farmingdale, Long Island (Weldon E. Howitt Middle School)
August 8: Laurens, Central NY (Laurens Central School)
August 14: Guilderland, Capital Region (Guilderland High School)

Sharing your personal experiences can profoundly affect the future of our public education system. We hope you'll be able to provide your testimony, either in-person or online, to support justice in this critical process.

In solidarity,

Zakiyah Shaakir-Ansari
Co-Executive Director
Alliance for Quality Education

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Sunday, July 28, 2024

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Friday, July 26, 2024

Upcoming Foundation Aid Hearings Need Your Input

Hi Ashley,

Next week's Foundation Aid hearing will be held on Tuesday, July 30, at Weldon E. Howitt Middle School in Farmingdale. We encourage you to participate and share your testimony to ensure your voice is heard in this important process.

If you plan to attend in-person, you must submit a speaker registration form in advance. You can also submit testimony in writing, which can be prepared in as few as ten minutes using our easy-to-follow testimony guide (available in English and Spanish). The deadline for submitting written testimony is September 6. If you cannot attend a hearing in-person, each of the upcoming hearings will be livestreamed, allowing you to participate virtually. Resources to help you craft your testimony and inform yourself on more of the details of this process are available on our website.

The Rockefeller Institute is collecting feedback to make nonbinding recommendations on potential revisions to the Foundation Aid formula. Your input will inform their final report, which will likely inform Governor Hochul's education budget proposal for the next fiscal year. The Governor has tasked the Rockefeller Institute with evaluating whether the formula is "fiscally sustainable," potentially prioritizing budgetary concerns over the constitutional obligation to provide every student with a sound basic education.

For all hearings going forward, stakeholder testimony begins at 2pm, and public comment for registered speakers starts at 5:30pm. Upcoming hearing dates and locations are as follows (click through the hyperlinks for the livestreams):

July 30: Farmingdale, Long Island (Weldon E. Howitt Middle School)
August 8: Laurens, Central NY (Laurens Central School)
August 14: Guilderland, Capital Region (Guilderland High School)

Sharing your personal story can significantly impact the future of our kids and public schools. We hope you can testify, whether in person or online, to advocate for justice and equity in this critical process.