Oct. 7, 2021
Critical action is needed today to inform our NC legislators to fund the Leandro Plan in the NC Education Budget to provide a sound basic education for all NC public school students. Please email this request for action to all North Carolinians in your network who care about their local public schools. The goal is to immediately produce a grassroots response by constituents who should tell their NC legislators how important the funding of their local public schools is to their communities. This request to action explains the details about this issue.
We CAN afford to fully fund the Leandro Plan. We SHOULD act in the best interest of students. And we MUST provide children with the sound, basic education they are owed.
Here is a sample of what you can forward to the people in your network.
Dear [Friend],
This is a critical moment for the future of public education in North Carolina – and for our state’s children. Please take action this week to help us ensure that all North Carolina children get the quality education they deserve – and create a better future for all.
The landmark case of Leandro v. State of North Carolina, a lawsuit brought by five low-wealth school districts, affirmed every child’s state constitutional right to a sound, basic education. For more than 20 years since this case was won, however, state lawmakers have denied children in our state the education they are constitutionally owed. In the latest court hearing last week, Judge David Lee gave policymakers a deadline of October 18th to fund the court-ordered plan developed to meet the state’s constitutional obligation. For more background on Leandro, pleaseread this article from the nonprofit NC Policy Watch.
Budget discussions are underway now among Gov. Cooper and House and Senate leaders to finalize education funding, and we need to make sure that our legislative leaders fully fund the Leandro Plan.
As Governor Cooper stated, “We have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to use our state’s resources to truly transform and strengthen our public schools. Our state has the resources to live up to our constitutional obligation to our children and now is the time to do it.”
Take action now. Contact your legislators to tell them to meet their constitutional obligation to ensure a sound, basic education for all.
Every Child NC, a statewide coalition of 40 education advocacy organizations and supporters, which includes members of the League of Women Voters of North Carolina, has an easy online email/Twitter/phone programinterface you can use to contact your legislators.
1. Click on the TAKE ACTION link below or copy and paste the link into your browser.
2. Enter your details.
3. Your NC legislators' email addresses will be automatically inserted into the email using your zip code.
4. Edit the email content to make it more personal. As a constituent, tell them about the concerns you have about your local public schools. If you work within the school system, have a child in the system, or are a student, share an anecdote about the problems that exist, especially related to the school budget.
Take Action: https://p2a.co/QqUq7ES
North Carolina’s students need an education that prepares them for success, but for far too long our public education system has not lived up to its promise. Leandro is an opportunity for our state to advance and invest in a better future for all. We all benefit when our children – and future leaders of this state– can fulfill their potential.
Sincerely,
[NAME]
