Sarasota and Manatee educators to “Take On Tallahassee”
The “Take On Tallahassee” rally brings together public education advocates throughout the state on the eve of the 2020 legislative session.
Early Monday morning roughly 100 public education advocates will travel from Sarasota and Manatee counties to “Take On Tallahassee,” an all-day rally in the state capitol calling on lawmakers to increase support for public education on the eve of the 2020 Legislative Session.
Union leaders from both counties are each hoping to fill a charter bus of supporters.
“We are taking a small group of mighty warriors for a long hard day,” said Manatee Education Association President Pat Barber. “We want a decade of progress after more than a decade of backward for public education.”
The Florida Education Association is organizing the rally, with hopes for representatives from each of Florida’s 67 counties. FEA President Fedrick Ingram said the event will focus on calls for increased public education funding and for reforms to policies that have increased testing in schools and diminished local control.
“We are holding lawmakers accountable for the situation they have created — for severe shortages of teachers and other school employees, for a lack of the counselors who help keep schools safe, for the loss of programs such as band and P.E., for overcrowded classrooms, for decaying buildings with leaking roofs,” Ingram said. “The Legislature must step up to do the right thing for our students and for Florida’s future.”
Guest speakers will include Manatee School Board member James Golden, the Rev. Al Sharpton and Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers. CONTINUE READING: Sarasota and Manatee educators to “Take On Tallahassee” - News - Sarasota Herald-Tribune - Sarasota, FL