Kalayaan School for Equity appreciates having open lines of communication with our elected officials. It’s a good sign that someone in Sacramento is listening. This really encourages us to continue to get as many postcards signed and sent off in order to concretely show our representatives that we are concerned, not just about future cuts to our education budget, but by the fact that Northern San Mateo County schools operate on less than most schools in California. We hope that all concerned representatives will not only defend our schools from further cuts but also fight for increased funding to California public schools with a special focus on promoting both educational quality and equity; in other words, we want to stop the budget cuts and get our schools more of the resources they desperately need. Check it out!

Yee Vows to Continue to Vote Against Education Cuts, Participates in “Day of Action”

Thursday, March 04, 2010

Senator Yee praises students, teachers, and parents for standing up for education

SACRAMENTO – Today, Senator Leland Yee (D-San Francisco) will join rallies in San Francisco and Sacramento as part of the international “Day of Action” to protest cuts to education.  Yee, who has consistently voted against all budget cuts to education and has vowed to continue to oppose any further reductions to schools and universities, is praising students, teachers, and parents for having their voices heard.

Yee plans to participate in a rally outside the Capitol in Sacramento at noon and another at Civic Center Plaza in San Francisco at 5:30 PM.

“I stand with the students, teachers, and parents who are saying ‘enough is enough,’” said Yee.  “The state budget should not be balanced on the backs of students and the most-vulnerable.  I will continue to oppose all budgets that put the interests of corporations and the rich before the interests of California families.”

“We are so proud of Senator Yee for standing up and saying no to more cuts,” said Marty Hittelman, President of the California Federation of Teachers.  “After all of the carnage inflicted by the governor and the legislature on education, it is a ray of sunshine to have a legislator like Senator Yee stand up for the people of California.  We, and the students we serve, applaud him.”

“If the Governor and his Republican colleagues are going to say taxes are off the table, then Democrats should say cuts to education are off the table,” said Yee.  “We need to stand by our principles and protect students and teachers.”

Earlier this week, Yee played a critical role in mediating on behalf of several protesting University of California students who participated in a sit-in at the Capitol.  Five students were arrested, but at Yee’s request they avoided a stay in county jail and instead were “cited and released” by the California Highway Patrol.

“Senator Yee was incredibly helpful,” said Claudia Magaña, a UC Santa Cruz student who was arrested.  “We would not have felt as confident without his support.  He understands our plight and his assistance allowed our voices to be taken seriously.  His participation showed how strong of supporter he is for the student movement and public education.”

Last week, Yee again voted against a potential cut to California schools when he was one of only two Senators to vote “no” on AB 8x 5, which included up to $2.5 billion in deferrals to education.  Yee also insisted that the proposed “gas tax swap” being voted on today provided a guarantee to Proposition 98 – voter-approved minimum funding for education.  Over the past two years, Yee has voted against budget cuts to education that have left public schools $17 billion short.

“While most legislators succumbed to political pressure on the budget, Senator Yee stood strong in protecting the values of our families,” said Jovan Agee, Political and Legislative Director of the United Domestic Workers.

“Students and teachers have a crystal clear idea who ultimately will impact their success and are demanding legislators hold UC executives accountable,” said Lakesha Harrison, President of AFSCME 3299, which represents over 20,000 UC employees.  “Senator Yee has been on the front lines holding UC executives to account.  His commitment to stand with students and workers is unwavering.”

Kalayaan School for Equity is working on distributing these to local schools, churches, and neighborhoods, but we could really use your help. If you’re interested in distributing these at your school, church, workplace, family gathering, etc., email us at KalayaanSchoolForEquity@gmail.com or give us a quick phone call at (650) 641-2891 x573. After all, it’s going to take a lot of us to send the message to Sacramento.

The conference brings together talented artists and educators to teach about all-things-hip-hop…

• Hip-Hop History: The Evolution of Hip-Hop by Zulu Gremlin
• Hip-Hop Women: B-Girls, It’s Your World by Dr. Susie Lundy
• Rhyming – Freestyle: The Art of Rhyming by Supernatural:
• Turntablism – D.J.: The Elements of Turntablism by DJ Celskiii
• Dance: The Fundamentals of Different Dance Styles by Tiffany-Jemini-Bong / Zulu Gremlin
• Writing: The Voice of the Hip-Hop Generation by The Mighty DJ Delrokz
• Graffiti Art – The Genesis of the Graffiti Art Movement in the Bay Area by Refa1

…as well as the RTSB3 Concert featuring an amazing line-up of mostly local talent. For the complete line-up, click the thumbnail image above.

Workshops: Saturday March 27 & Sunday March 28, 9:00am-4:00pm
Concerts: Saturday March 27, 7:00pm-10:30pm
Location: Skyline College, 3300 College Drive, San Bruno, CA

$25 Platinum Package: All Saturday & Sunday Workshops + Concert Ticket + T-Shirt
$20 Dance Workshop Only: Sunday Dance Workshops
$15 Gold Package: Workshops: Saturday Workshops + Concert Ticket + T-Shirt
$12 Concert Ticket

Purchase tickets and get more info right now over at tickets.rocktheschoolbells.com.

• FACT: According to 2007-2008 data, our high school district, Jefferson Union High School District (JUHSD) on average had $5,237 to spend on each student. Only 12.5 miles down the Peninsula, San Mateo Union High School District had $8,077 for each of their students; just 25 miles away, Sequoia Union High School District had $10,611 to support each of theirs; and a mere 32 miles on the other end of the county, Palo Alto Unified School District had $7,809 to use to educate the youth in their area. Compared to the lowest of these numbers, JUHSD had $2,572 less per student to work with.
• FACT: According to 2007-2008 data, JUHSD had $1,219,824 less to spend on its students compared to the average “Per Pupil Spending” amount of all California Schools. Factor in the budget cuts we’ve already sustained since 2007-2008, and you have to wonder…

There are very few of us who would argue that the quality of public education has a direct relationship with the prosperity of our local communities as well as that of the entire state. We’re often shocked to hear that California ranks #48 amongst the 50 United States in terms of how much money it invests in the education of its young people. It’s clear, we have de-prioritized education.

Daly City and Northern San Mateo County schools know these facts from experience. Our school districts are not only underfunded compared to the rest of the state but also compared to more than 70% of our county. Couple this fact with the area’s largely immigrant and working class population which requires a unique set of educational resources, it is clear that our schools are under-funded; by no means do we have the resources required to adequately address the needs of our population.

And just who lives in Daly City? We’re more than just “that place with the Target and the movie theater that’s less crowded than Metreon.” Of Daly City’s 101,514 residents (2008 estimated), 35.4% are Filipino, 24.9% are Latino, 19.5% are Asian, 15.7% are of European descent, 4.56% are African American, 0.44% are Native American, and 2.4% are Pacific Islander. The 2008 median income for a Daly City household was $60,310, and the median income for an entire family was $66,365. Daly City is also one of the most densely populated cities in the country with a 2008 population density of 15,703.8 people per square mile. However, Daly City’s per capita income for the city was merely $22,900. The result? About 5.2% of Daly City families and 9.1% of our residents live below the poverty line.

Recognizing the facts surrounding the under-funding of California’s schools will be important in the next few years as this debate about our investment in Public Education continues. As a community, we need to understand that the February 2009 and the upcoming cuts to the State’s Public Education Budget mean that we will actually be further crippling schools that have already been forced to operate on fumes. How much longer can we ask Public Educators to “be creative” or “efficient”? How can anyone be asked to save when their accounts are way too low as it is?

As a community, we need to come together to understand these issues and find ways that we can support our schools directly as well as advocate for their well-being. Even those of us who do not work in schools or have children of school-age should be concerned about the long-term effects an under-funded school system could have on the future of our neighborhoods. Please join us in the months to come as we struggle to find ways to unite Northern San Mateo in defense of our Public Schools. Please contact us at KalayaanSchoolForEquity@gmail.com or by phone at (650) 641-2891 x573.

To support our local school district, we’ve put together a 35-50 minute (depending on how deeply you decide to engage students/audience members) Apple Keynote and PowerPoint lesson that we invite all to download, distribute, and most importantly use on March 4th and beyond. We hope you’ll find it to be a valuable tool to raise awareness about how our local schools are funded and the short and long-term effects that further cuts could have on Northern San Mateo County. Included is some eye-opening data about the per pupil spending of our local schools, how that compares to other districts on the Peninsula, and info about California’s Economy that offers some interesting perspective on the issue. Of course, if you’re a Cali resident but aren’t living in Daly City, Pacifica, Colma (snicker), or South SF, some of the specific info might not apply directly, but—we’re really sorry to say—chances are most of it will connect to you and your community.

• If you want to download a low-res PDF of the presentation to preview it, click here. (PDF 1.4MB)
• If you’re on a Mac that has Keynote, click here. (Keynote 7MB zip)
• If you’re on a Windows PC or a Mac that doesn’t have Keynote, click here. It’s definitely not as pretty, but works just fine. (PowerPoint 10.6MB zip)

We’re currently working on other support materials such as other lessons, handouts, etc., so keep checking back. Kalayaan School for Equity is hoping to work up to a larger campaign to gather broader community support for our local schools. If you’re interested in helping out, please contact us at KalayaanSchoolForEquity@gmail.com or at (650) 641-2891 x573.