Tuesday, October 2, 2012

CEA Office Open House


Just a reminder that today is the big day!  The CEA Board of Directors welcomes you to our Office Open House.  Don’t forget to drop by between 3:00pm and 7:00pm to experience the feel of your Professional Organization in its NEW location:



Winchester Building, Suite 100
10800 Midlothian Turnpike
North Chesterfield, VA 23235
804-897-1756

Monday, October 1, 2012

CEA-CCPS Discuss Collaboration at TURN

Chesterfield sent a team of CEA and CCPS representatives to the Mid-Atlantic/Southeast Teacher Union Reform Network (MASE TURN) meeting in Raleigh, NC, this past weekend.  The majority of the trip was funded through a Gates Foundation grant designed to help unions and school divisions better understand each other's perspectives, and communicate those concerns in ways that will lead to greater collaboration to improve student learning. The theme of the meeting, which included teams from Fairfax and Spotsylvania Counties in Virginia, as well as teams from Maryland, Georgia, North Carolina, and Florida, was Building Collaborative Partnerships to Improve Teacher Effectiveness.  Presenters from the Center for Teaching Quality, the U.S. Department of Education, and Jefferson County School District and its union partner Jefferson County Education Association led us through conversations focused on joint union-district responsibility for teacher evaluation, and differentiated compensation.

Monday, September 24, 2012

CEA Rep Council Rescheduled

The CEA Representative Council meeting that had to be postponed due to weather concerns on Tuesday, September 18, has been rescheduled for WEDNESDAY, September 26.

The meeting will still be held at Monacan HS from 4:30-6:00pm.  Please enter through door #1, and follow the hallway to your left to the Library Media Center.  See you there!

Tuesday, September 18, 2012

Breaking Update: Rep Council Postponed

This is an important update:

The CEA Rep Council meeting scheduled for TODAY at Monacan HS has been POSTPONED as a result of CCPS issuing a school closure announcement due to sever weather concerns.  All after-school activities are cancelled today, and all school facilities will close immediately after the student instructional day is over. 

Information about a rescheduled date for Rep Council will be announced as soon as it is available.  We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause, but appreciate CCPS caring for the safety or our Members and the students they educate.

Monday, September 17, 2012

More Movement: Rep Council now at Monacan HS

Many of you have already stopped by the new CEA Office on Midlothian Turnpike, but we're not the only thing that's moving this year.  Not to be left out, Rep Council has a new venue as well.  Last year we left our old familiar meeting place (Manchester MS) in search of a room without a dividing wall that separated our Reps, making it difficult for everyone to see one another while discussing issues.  We tried the Fulghum Center, which allowed everyone to see each other, but that cavernous room made it difficult to hear everyone without amplification.  So where will we be this year?  Monacan HS has agreed to host our first meeting of the new school year, and possibly beyond. We will kick the tires on their library tomorrow afternoon.

Monacan HS is located in the Smoketree subdivision, at
11501 Smoketree Drive, North Chesterfield, VA 23236 
(right off of Courthouse Road between Hull Street and Midlothian Turnpike).  As always, Rep Council begins at 4:30pm, with a half hour of light refreshments and social time preceding the meeting.  The scheduled ending time is 6:00pm.

Important changes to our governing documents (Bylaws and Articles of Incorporation) will be discussed, as well as local and state-level issues that will affect our Members.  I hope to see all of the Reps tomorrow at Monacan; they will be bringing back important documents to share with all the Members in their buildings.
~Frank

Thursday, July 12, 2012

CEA Office Moves to Midlo

We'll be unpacking for much of the summer, but will be open
to help Members throughout the entire process.

New Home for CEA!

School ended, and while everyone was busy getting ready for summer, CEA office staff were busy getting ready for the big move.  


That's right, the next time you visit the CEA Office, you'll be three miles farther west on Midlothian Turnpike.  After a dozen years at our previous location in the Cloverleaf Office Park, and almost 30 years total on Turner Road, market conditions and membership changes made the time right for CEA to relocate.  


The CEA Office is now housed in Suite 100 of the Winchester Building at 10800 Midlothian Turnpike.  The new office takes advantage of shared conference room facilities to reduce the number of square feet of leased space, thus allowing us to redirect financial resources into projects to support our Members.  As in the past, the Colonial Heights Education Association will be partners in maintaining the office, and both of the  UniServ Directors assigned to our unit (District 15; Chesterfield/Colonial Heights UniServ) will be housed on site, along with the CEA's full-time released president, and an administrative secretary.  


Many months of research and planning went into the move, including securing the help of a commercial real estate agent who has experience with non-profit organizations.  In fact, she helped our neighbors in the Richmond Education Association relocate and save Members money as well.  The new CEA Office is an upgrade in every way except cost: the interior was designed and configured to meet the needs of an active Association; new carpet and freshly painted walls create a comfortable, professional environment for our Members to host meetings in; since most meetings take place after school and well into the evening, a safe neighborhood was important; the parking lot is well lit, and all exterior doors are locked after regular business hours with electronic keycard access required to gain admission; other tenants in the building include financial consultants, property management groups, attorneys, insurance companies, and medical firms.


The Chesterfield Education Association is THE employee advocacy organization for all of the education professionals of the Chesterfield County Public School system.  We hope you will take advantage of all your union has to offer, and come visit YOUR office in its new location.


Chesterfield Education Association
Winchester Building, Suite 100
10800 Midlothian Turnpike
North Chesterfield, VA 23235
(804) 897-1756 


Monday, May 21, 2012

Testing...Testing...1, 2, 3...

Several CEA Members recently attended a public forum on High-stakes Testing sponsored by the Richmond Teachers for Social Justice. It was great to see our Members and Building Reps out in the community sharing their expertise and networking with other teachers and parents in the Richmond Metro Area. Participating in events like this is a great way to share our message about what really works well (and what doesn't) in public education, and to confront in a very positive way the corporate-sponsored and government-backed attacks on our profession.

RTSJ is hosting a follow-up meeting on Monday, June 4, 4:30-6:00 pm, at VCU's Oliver Hall Room 4084B (1015 W. Main St., Richmond). The agenda includes a continuation of the public discussion, including steps that can be taken to resist the corrupting effects of high-stakes testing. You can learn more about the group and how to become involved by visiting their website, http://www.rvatsj.org/.

While not affiliated with RTSJ, Chesterfield County Public Schools acknowledges the amount of student, parent, and teacher stress created by high-stakes testing, at the emotional and cognitive levels. The April 2012 edition of Psych Briefs, published by CCPS Psychological Services, was entirely dedicated to managing test anxiety.

This is a big conversation nationally and at the state level. Don't let all the dialogue occur between people who are years removed from the classroom; become part of the conversation here at the local level. Tests, like any other entity, are neither inherently good nor bad; it is the design, implementation, administration, and utilization of the results they yield that can have significant impact on quality teaching and student learning.      

Wednesday, May 16, 2012

Forget 9-9-9, CEA Supports 3-3-3


Most of us were not sad to see Herman Cain and his "9-9-9 Plan" retire from the presidential nomination race earlier this year; the same can not be said of the retiring Members we recognized last night.  CEA said goodbye and thank you to our version of the "3-3-3 Plan": three hundred thirty-three years of experience and educational excellence.  The attending retirees, including former committee chairs and long-time Building Reps, were recognized by the current CEA Rep Council and Board of Directors for their dedicated service not only to the children of Chesterfield County, but also to the colleagues who they have mentored and supported over the years, and to the greater good of public education.

While the retirees were treated to cake and hot hors d'oeuvres, former CEA President and current Chair of the CEA Retired Educators committee (CEA-R) delivered a humorous and passionate keynote address, filling in for VEA President-elect Meg Gruber who was representing VEA senior staff at a funeral in Chesapeake.

Also recognized were the winners of the Dawn Campbell CEA Member Scholarships: Donna Charles-Koski (Guidance Counselor, Thomas Dale HS) and Rich Peterson (Math Teacher, Manchester HS), and the Fred Thompson CEA Student Scholarship: Maya Henderson (Meadowbrook HS), as well as Judith Leshen (Elizabeth Scott ES) who completed her 10-year renewal certificate as a National Board Certified Teacher.

The evening concluded with the regular monthly business session of the Rep Council, in which the CEA Budget for FY2013 was approved.

Thank you again to all of our retiring Members for your professional pride in your work, your students, your union, and your community. We wish you the best in all future endeavors, and hope you stay involved with CEA/VEA/NEA through our Retired Educators group. Congratulations on such meaningful and empowering careers!  

Monday, May 14, 2012

CEA Annual Recognition Meeting and Rep Council Tomorrow!!!

One day left until the CEA annual Recognition Meeting.  Time to say thank you to the CEA Members who are retiring at the end of the year, announce our Student and Member scholarship winners, congratulate newly achieving and renewing National Board Certified Teachers, and install the members of our Board of Directors who have been elected and/or appointed for the coming year.  
All this happening tomorrow, May 15, from 4:30-6:00pm, at the Fulghum Center.

Wednesday, May 9, 2012

National School Nurses Day


It was nice of the General Assembly to pass a law requiring that life-saving medication be present at all times during the school day in ALL of our schools; it would be nicer if they passed a law requiring that highly qualified medical personnel be present at all times during the school day to administer it.  Thank you to all of the public health nurses who diagnose, treat, comfort, and educate in CCPS schools.  

Tuesday, May 8, 2012

CEA Annual Recognition Meeting

Just a reminder that Tuesday, May 15, from 4:30-6:00pm, CEA will hold it's annual Recognition Meeting where we say thank you to the CEA Members who are retiring at the end of the year, announce our Student and Member scholarship winners, congratulate newly achieving and renewing National Board Certified Teachers, and install the members of our Board of Directors who have been elected and/or appointed for the coming year.

This year's keynote speaker is VEA President-elect Meg Gruber, of Prince William County. Meg recently purchased a home in Chesterfield to shorten her commute to Richmond. Come welcome Meg to Chesterfield, and hear her in one of the first speaking engagements in her new role. This is an open meeting, and all members are welcome to attend!

Following the Recognition Meeting, there will be an abbreviated business session of the regular monthly Rep Council meeting. Reps are reminded to please send all reports or concerns in advance as the agenda for this meeting is more tightly constrained than the other months of the year.

The meeting will be held in the Chesterfield Room of the Fulghum Center. Hot and cold refreshments will be provided. Come and thank our retiring Members for all their years of dedicated service to their students and their union colleagues.

National Educator Appreciation Week

Happy National Teacher Day 2012
Thank you for making CEA such a meaningful organization of education professionals.  I am proud to represent you.  I hope you are thanked so much today that you don't have time to grade a single paper!  (And don't take any home either!)

Wednesday, April 4, 2012

Call 12 = Call CEA

Tonight's WWBT (NBC) Channel 12 newscasts (from 5:00 to 6:30pm) will feature questions from the public on preparing students for the SOL tests as part of the station's "Call 12" initiative. I will be part of the panel along with the other Richmond Metro Area presidents of our local "teachers' unions," providing another resource for helping families improve educational opportunities for their children. ~FC

Monday, April 2, 2012

Pension Protection Coalition Press Conference: VETO HB1130/SB498


After the success that we had in pushing HB 576 back to committee, we ran into the major problem of what the House and Senate did in the closing hours of the 2012 General Assembly session to the Virginia Retirement System.

The VEA has been working closely with our partners in the Pension Protection Coalition—a group made up of Virginia firefighters, retired teachers, the AFL-CIO, the Commonwealth Institute—to sort through the implications of that sweeping and damaging “pension reform.”   

Below are snippets (posted to YouTube) by the leaders of the Pension Protection Coalition from the joint press conference held this past Thursday.  All of the Coalition members are sharing the same call to action: Contact the Governor and ask him to VETO Joint Conference Report HB1130/SB498.  Please call (804) 786-2211, and email via  http://www.governor.virginia.gov/AboutTheGovernor/contactGovernor.cfm today and everyday until the matter is resolved.

Dr. Kitty Boitnott, Virginia Education Association President 
Kitty Boitnott responds to a question about why citizens should care that public employees are being negatively impacted by this legislative change.
Jennifer McClellan, Virginia Delegate (House District 71) 
Del. Jennifer McClellan highlights how the conference report of HB1130/SB498--dealing with significant changes to the pension system--was rushed to vote.
Michael Mohler, Virginia Professional Fire Fighters President 
Michael Mohler speaks to the sacrifices that public employees have made in return for modest salaries and a modest pension.
Robley Jones, VEA Government Relations Director 
Rob Jones clarifies that the conference bill the GA approved in the waning hours of session flies in the face of JLARC's recommendations in dealing with the VRS.
Michael Cassidy, Commonwealth Institute President and CEO 
Michael Cassidy addresses questions about the economic impact of drastically changing the VRS benefits structure, not just to retirees themselves, but to the larger economic framework of Virginia. 

Please call Governor McDonnell at (804) 786-2211, 
and ask him to VETO Joint Conference Report HB1130/SB498 
out of respect for Virginia's retired public servants.

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Board of Supervisors VOTE on FY13 Budget this afternoon at 3:00pm

The Chesterfield Board of Supervisors will vote on the FY13 Budget and the supporting tax and fee rates, as well as the Capital Improvement Program (CIP), during the afternoon session of their meeting tonight. The session begins at 3:00pm and breaks for dinner at 5:00pm. The evening session begins at 6:30pm, but will not deal with the budget. Please attend if you can, and show support for the CCPS financial plan, including allowances and contingencies for changes in VRS funding requirements currently being enacted by the General Assembly as they finalize the state budget.

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

"A Statement of Grievances is in Order"

This week, in place of his usual blog post on Living in Dialogue--one of my highly recommended regular reads for educators, by the way--Anthony Cody yields his space to reprint the speech of School Superintendent John Kuhn, who spoke at a "Save Texas Schools" rally this past Saturday.  The speech really is amazing, and worthy of sharing here as well.  As you read Kuhn's words, substitute "Virginia" for "Texas," and "Richmond" for "Austin," then tell me you don't feel the larger connection of a national agenda that replaces the politics of "Hope" with the politics of "Blame."

Here's just a teaser; please click the link below to read the whole speech.

"This government has neglected the classics and has called on our children to become technicians instead of humans, regurgitators of math and science facts, who produce well-rounded bubbles in place of well-rounded souls; it has sought to make our children quantifiable shells of people, their guiding light of curiosity snuffed out by an idiot's opinion of what constitutes a human education."

http://blogs.edweek.org/teachers/living-in-dialogue/2012/03/john_kuhn_roars_back.html?cmp=SOC-SHR-FB



Wednesday, March 21, 2012

The Chesterfield Carol

If you missed the BoS Public Hearing on the Budget, Wednesday night, you missed a great display of collective action by CEA Members from Midlothian HS. Thanks Amy, Daniel, Brittany, David, and Geri. 


Great message, great collaboration. 


Follow the link to our parallel Member-written blog, CEA Stories, to read "The Chesterfield Carol" in its entirety!  http://ceastoryteller.blogspot.com/

And as always, you can get the text of any of my testimonies for School Board, Board of Supervisors, or other public forums at http://ceafranklyspeaking.blogspot.com/

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

BoS Public Hearing TONIGHT!

The Board of Supervisors will hold their annual Public Hearing on the Tax Rates and the FY2013 Budget tonight beginning at 6:30pm. 

Since they have already advertised the real estate tax rate at $0.95/$100 assessed value (the same as last year and the year before, even though housing values have declined for the 4th year in a row), there is no opportunity to generate additional money for schools. However, it is critical that educators show up to support full funding of the school board's approved budget (the one that puts back the lost salary cuts!) because there will be plenty of people there to say, "lower my taxes AGAIN!"--even though many of them qualify for exemptions even with a higher earnings threshold ($52k) than you, and a net worth of up to $350k (not even including their home!)--in addition to people who would rather see the existing revenue directed to projects other than schools.

There will be a sign-up sheet at the door for anyone who wishes to speak on the budget. In years past I have provided lots of data to use when arguing against cuts; this year the message is pretty straight-forward, "Support the school board's approved financial plan, AND please hold the school board budget harmless against any additional costs that result from the general assembly's changes to the Virginia Retirement System (VRS)." Short, sweet, to the point. If you want to give personal stories about what full funding means to your classroom, that's good too, but at least drive home the central theme. Please turn out to support your colleagues!

The meeting is held at the Public Meeting Room, 10001 Iron Bridge Road, Chesterfield, VA 23832.

Bring your friends!

Friday, March 9, 2012

Lemons, Tirades, and Brass: Oh MY!!!


This is a LONG post, but worth investing some time in reading/watching, as it is the culmination of a long, hard fought battle over changes to continuing contract law.  There are three distinct parts to the post: an introduction and some thanks, a press release from VEA President Dr. Kitty Boitnott, and the video footage of the actual Senate debate on the bill and the corresponding vote.
***
First, I'd like to thank all the CEA Members who called, wrote, and emailed their Delegates and Senators over HB576.  They received literally THOUSANDS of comments statewide!  This was truly an example of the power of collective action.  In addition to all the direct "touches" from Members to their legislators, there were many other facets to this accomplishment, including the physical demonstrations of solidarity through wearing black, attending rallies, and holding "grade ins." VEA Staff gathered behind the scenes legal research for precedent of constitutional "property rights" of teachers who already attained continuing contract, not to mention all the data crunching to provide demographic support for the kind of "market comparison" that would affect teacher recruitment and retention versus neighboring states.  This was a great team effort and should be pointed to with pride as a reason for belonging to the VEA: not only the outcome, but the whole process!
***
Contract Bill Decision a Win for Public Education
VEA President Dr. Kitty Boitnott issued the following statement on the defeat of HB 576:

The defeat of this poorly conceived bill is a victory for public educators and students. And the bipartisan vote shows that the facts are on our side, as the 23 Senators confirmed.

Virginia has much work to do to make sure the best teachers are in front of students across the state. But this bill would have had the opposite effect—it would have made it easier to arbitrarily fire teachers while doing little to enhance the support all teachers need to be successful.

Arguments that the Governor and others made in support of HB 576 were without merit. Teachers can be—and are—dismissed every year for underperformance. But they are afforded the opportunity of a hearing and proof of good cause. The biggest change that HB 576 would have made would be to make it easier to dismiss teachers for specious reasons, such as refusing to change a star athlete’s grade, or for speaking out at a school board meeting.

Now is not the time to make Virginia a less attractive place to teach. Our average salaries currently trail the national average by $7,000, ranking us 31st. Teachers’ retirement benefits are under attack. HB 576, by gutting the limited job security that our teachers do have, would surely have made it harder for the state to recruit the best and brightest into our classrooms. Teachers that might have come to Virginia would opt for other states with better pay and working conditions.

We call on Governor McDonnell to turn his attention to the things that really matter for kids—smaller class sizes, better training and professional learning opportunities for teachers, and up‐to-date textbooks and instructional technologies.
***

Thursday, March 1, 2012

RT-D Correspondent of the Day

A little bonus content for you today: for those who have not seen CEA Member and Cosby HS Government Teacher Renee Serrao's Letter-to-the-Editor in the Richmond Times-Dispatch, I have posted it up on the CEA President's blog, Frankly Speaking...

Way to go Renee!  Thank you for speaking up for your colleagues and our profession.

The Longer they Stall, the MORE We'll CALL!

For the third day in a row, the Senate opted not to act on HB576, the bill that eliminates continuing contract for Virginia teachers.  Chesterfield Senator Steve Martin requested that the bill be passed by for the day, after taking a quick look around the room.  This leads me to believe that he doesn't feel that he has the votes to get the bill passed!  That is a good thing: it means that our efforts to show the senators how this bill will negatively impact public schools for the future are working!  Keep up the message, don't let the pressure off.  Call Senators Watkins and Martin, and tell them as a constituent you want them to vote "No!" on HB576.  The vote has been delayed until Monday; call today, tomorrow, and Saturday.
John Watkins (804-698-7510)
Steve Martin (804-698-7511)


All other Virginia Senators:

Monday, February 27, 2012

Once More, With Feeling!

Urgent! Call Chesterfield Senators John Watkins (804-698-7510) and Steve Martin (804-698-7511) and let them know that as a professional educator, parent/grandparent, registered voter, and tax paying citizen you strongly want them to vote NO on HB576.
(If you live outside of Chesterfield, the full list of Senators and their contact info is at the bottom of this post.)

The final vote on HB576, the bill that will eliminate continuing contract rights for all future teachers in Virginia will be voted on by the full Senate within the next two days. Supporters of the bill (which include the Virginia School Board Association, Virginia Association of School Superintendents, the Virginia Board of Education, and private business groups) continue to maintain that this bill creates parity with other PRIVATE workers in the state, and will somehow magically improve education by removing due process rights from employees.

Former Robious MS Principal and now Deputy Secretary of Education, Javaid Siddiqi, offered testimony that the people who had had the greatest reservations with the original language [i.e. the VEA] should now be appeased since they had been grandfathered in, and he proposed that this new language would somehow improve instruction and bring into greater alignment the work being done by principals and teachers to improve classroom instruction in the future.

Once again, the rhetoric is completely disconnected from the change in the law: how does taking away an employee's right to know WHY s/he is not being offered a new contract, as well as an opportunity to appeal the decision, "bring into greater alignment the work being done by principals and teachers to improve classroom instruction in the future?" It would seem counter-productive to strengthening the relationship between principals and teachers for the former to be able to destroy the career of the latter without having to give any evidence to support the decision. I suspect that will create a very cautious and guarded relationship, not one that promotes open exchange of ideas.

Senate Phone list (call the Capitol Office, not District at this point):
http://apps.lis.virginia.gov/sfb1/Senate/TelephoneList.aspx

"We wore black by the thousands last week. Now we need to take action by the thousands…this is a serious attack on our professionalism and we must not let it stand!"
~Kitty Boitnott, VEA President

Friday, February 3, 2012

Protect Your Continuing Contract and Due Process Rights: Take Action Now!

This post includes information that VEA President Kitty Boitnott shared with all local presidents this morning, and is an IMMEDIATE CALL TO ACTION for all CEA Members!

The link below gives the latest details of how the House of Delegates is trying to change continuing contract law. As HB576 is currently written, the legislation will allow you to be non-renewed at the end of each contract period for any reason no matter how long you have been teaching, and without a guarantee to due process rights. http://www.veadailyreports.com/

Along with the synopsis provided by VEA Government Relations Director Rob Jones is a link to the full text of the bill itself so that everyone can see that this is not a case of the union crying "The Sky is Falling!" as supporters of the bill would try to misdirect public opinion. The members of the sub-committee who you need to contact are Keam, Cole, Morrissey, McClellan, Yost, Yancey, and Robinson.
Roxann Robinson (House 27th) represents many CEA members in a wide swath of Central Chesterfield County. Here is a link to a map of her voting precincts:
http://www.chesterfield.gov/WorkArea/linkit.aspx?LinkIdentifier=id&ItemID=12417

Her contact info is:  DelRRobinson@house.virginia.gov
(804) 698-1027 (Capitol Office: Room 806 General Assembly Building, Richmond);
(804) 308-1534 (District Office, Suite F-1 Rockwood Office Park, 9409 Hull Street Road, Chesterfield)

We must convince her to vote "No" on this bill.

Rob Jones previously offered a Cyberlobbying message and link on the VEA website a few days ago. The link below will take you to a pre-written message that you can send your legislator regarding this issue.  You can send the message as is, or modify it to express your personal experience. Just make sure that you send it from your HOME computer, NOT FROM SCHOOL. http://capwiz.com/nea/va/issues/alert/?alertid=60621591&queueid=7822344256

Here are some key talking points you can use in your email to the legislators.

1. Who will want to teach under a system that would allow any complaint by parents, accusation by a student, or an honest mistake to result in loss of a job, with NO ability to appeal or contest the decision regardless of validity?

2. Who will want to come join us teaching in Virginia if they have no ability to earn job security that they can obtain in surrounding states? This bill will make it harder for Virginia localities to recruit and retain the best and brightest teachers.

3. What will the workplace atmosphere and environment be like with the threat of capricious termination (at the end of the year) hovering over every teacher in the building? People do not perform at their best when placed into high stress situations.

4. This is NOT about unions protecting the so-called “bad” teacher who may be lurking in classrooms out there. The current system already allows administrators to remove a “bad teacher” whenever they need to: they just have to use due diligence, and use the system we already have the way it was intended to be used.

5. This IS about fairness and due process rights. Under the proposed bill, a teacher could be non-renewed after a specific term contract period and not be given any reason. There would be no grievance procedure and no legal recourse for that individual.

6. This is BAD PUBLIC POLICY and would have a tremendous negative effect on Virginia’s teachers (while we are still ranked 4th in the nation in providing the best education according to Education Week) and on our ability to recruit and retain the best and brightest talent to Virginia’s classrooms in the future.

Remember, the sub-committee meets Tuesday a.m. at 7:30! Weigh in and let your voices be heard. Email this weekend, PLEASE!

If you have already written, thank you! If you haven’t, please do so immediately, and please get the message out TODAY that everyone needs to get busy RIGHT NOW!!!!