Send us reports of what you are doing so that we can post them on our website and encourage others! Let us know if you contacted a legislator, wrote a letter to the editor, or have an upcoming event.
INFORM OTHERS:
Make a list of people to meet with - friends, colleagues, policy makers, business and religious leaders, community activists and elected officials. Systematically meet with those indiviudals, let them see or hear these tapes. Discuss the issues with them. Get back to them. Refer tham to our office 651-646-0646 or our website - www.edwatch.org. Have specific information to leave with them. Don't try to tell them everything at once. Expect to find many people unreceptive and disinterested. Do not be discouraged by the complacency of others.
Distribute literature, books and videos. (See our downloads and shop online.)
Hold meetings in your home or elsewhere to show information videos.
Hold larger community meetings with guest speakers. MREdCo presenters can be reached by calling 651-646-0646.
Call in to radio talk shows.
SCHOOL DISTRICT:
Review your child's curriculum. Look for what is and what is not being taught. Many times, simply voicing your concern can bring about change. Other times, you will be made to feel like you are the only one to have these questions. That is simply not true. (State law requires that every school district allow for parental review of curriculum and alternative instruction if requested. Section 120B.20.) Examples of parents who have "paid attention":
Attend school board meetings and develop relationships with your school board members. Monitor new changes within your district. Look for Small Learning Communities and other parts of the system to be implemented piece by piece.
Provide teachers, principals, superintendants, and school board members with a copy of Fed Ed. Encourage them to read it and dialogue with them about their thoughts. Do not be abrasive. Have a helpful, concerned attitude.
LEGISLATIVE DISTRICT:
Help us organize and inform others in your district by becoming a district organizer. Please e-mail us for further information.
Network with other likeminded individuals in your community. Call us to find others near you. Work with them to contact and keep legislators accountable for their votes during the legislative session. Keep up to date on legislative events through our e-mail updates.
Call your legislators, visit your legislators, write your legislators with personal "Profile" stories! To establish a meaninful connection, your legislator needs to hear from you at least three times about an issue.
Attend Education and Workforce legislative hearings. The presence of unpaid lobbyists speaks volumes to the public's concerned.
STATE AND NATIONAL:
Put our videos on local cable stations. This is an extremely effective and free way to inform the listening public. Cable stations are looking for information to use. Take advantage of it opportunity!
Place Fed Ed in local libraries.
Monitor your local newspapers for educational events and changes. Through the paper, citizens of Burnsville found their district was considering Small Learning Communities. Write letters to the editor. Organize an effective letter-writing campaign, with different people submitting letters at different times. Papers have a limit on how many letters from one person they will print. To find contact information for your local paper, go to the Minnesota Newspapers Directory.
