Does it seem to you that that the ubiquitous IEA slogan, “Invest in Excellence,” is a lot less prominent lately?
It’s not your imagination.
Invest in Excellence (aka IIE), as a slogan and campaign name, is being retired.
The reason for that is found in stories about massive budget cuts planned in school districts throughout central Illinois, in the southeastern part of the state, in the suburbs of Plainfield and Elgin and everywhere else in Illinois.
And those stories are just from last week!
IIE has been replaced as the name of the IEA funding reform campaign by SOS: Save our Schools/Save Our State because Illinois public education is in the midst of an unprecedented crisis.
RIFs and the reduction or elimination of academic programs, sports, field trips, and extracurricular activities are all being threatened as a result of the state budget crisis. We’ve heard estimates that as many as 17,000 possible positions could be lost in public schools.
If this situation doesn’t warrant a distress signal, nothing ever would.
In marketing parlance, this is called “re-branding.” The IEA funding campaign is being rechristened in an effort to ensure everyone understands that the situation is critical and demands immediate attention.
Renaming/rebranding is not ”starting over.” SOS is a continuation and intensification of the IEA funding program.
The IEA principles that have guided IIE since the beginning remain the same:
1. Increase student achievement by improving the public education system.
2. Provide adequate resources to all preK-12 public schools.
3. Provide adequate resources to all public higher education institutions in ways that will keep tuition affordable for all students
4. Provide a long-term solution for pension system stability and funding.
5. Do no harm to any public education entity, that is, no public education entity receives less money than it is currently receiving.
IIE served us well, but new circumstances dictate new tactics aimed at achieving the same goal. Regardless of the name, the IEA commitment to fair funding remains strong.
An SOS is being sent because the situation is dire. Will you answer? Will you encourage your colleagues, family and friends to do the same?
Brady quote of the day
Today’s Brady moment is from the Greg Hinz column in Crain’s Chicago Business.
The presumptive Republican nominee for governor, State Senator Bill Brady, is extremely conservative on both social and fiscal issues. In a state that is nearly $13 billion in debt, Brady not only is insisting there will be no tax increase, he also wants to cut state spending, including education, by ten percent across-the-board.
That’s right. We could be already looking at education job losses of 17,000 and Bill Brady wants to further cut education.
Not only that, Brady wants to divert public money to private schools through vouchers, he wants public schools to teach Creationism, he wants public schools to lead prayers and he would force new public employes into 401K plans with no option for a defined benefit (traditional pension) plan.
Noting that candidates with far right views don’t usually win elections in Illinois, Hinz asked Brady if he planned “to reach out” to groups that clearly won’t like the Brady agenda, “if only to let them know that it’s not personal.” Brady’s response:
“I’m appealing to the chamber of commerce and groups that share my view as to what’s necessary for Illinois.”
Translation: Brady isn’t interested in trying to convince people different from him that he has the best answers for Illinois. He’s sticking to his base and standing by his non-mainstream beliefs that, ordinarily, you wouldn’t expect to be winners in a “blue state.”
He’ll tell Illinoisans what they want to hear; that they can cut spending avoid tax increases and lose nothing. It’s untrue, but it was that kind of hooey that got Rod Blagojevich reselected four years ago. He wants to hold his base and grab some independents who lean right.
It’s an election plan that can work if voters who care about public education, who believe the state has a responsibility to its citizens, especially children, the sick and the elderly, stay home on election day.
Will IEA members who didn’t bother to vote in the primary show up in November? Does everyone get what’s at stake?
We’re in a crisis.
