Mobilizing To Help Publ (NAPSA)—Teachers, parents and community members nationwide see education as a top priority. Many are now working together to make sure their voices are heard by voters, elected officials and the media to makeschools even better. “There has never been a more critical time for people to get involved with the issues that impact our public schools,” said Reg Weaver, president of the National Education Association. “There are some significant concerns in our communities on issues such as early childhood education, high school graduation rates, the conditions of school facilities, adequate and equitable funding, closing the achievement gap and the impact of the socalled No Child Left Behind Act.” Weaver says it’s important for people to elevate issues that affect America’s children and public education to the forefront of current policy debate. That’s why the National Education Association, MoveOn.org, Campaign for America’s Future, ACORN, NAACP Voters Fund, and U.S. Hispanic Leadership Institute have joined forces as the National Mobilization for Great Public Schools. The nonpartisan National Mobilization initiative is designed to help get Americans talking about the successes and challenges facing public schools—and the need for citizen action to make education a greater priority at every level of government. “This is not just about narrow reforms and the lack of resources for education. We believe we must fh a. A new movement may help make America’s public schools even better. make education a higher priority from the community level to the federal government if we are to provide every child access to a high-quality education,” said Robert Borosage, co-director of Campaign for America’s Future. “Schools across the country are attempting to teach kids without textbooks, cutting programs from the arts to physical education and doing it all in decades-old facilities that are badly in need of repair,” added Maude Hurd, na- tional president of Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN). To learn how you can become a part of the National Mobilization for Great Public Schools, visit www.greatpublicschools.org.
