The powerful school privatization lobbyists and A.L.E.C. have spoken, and your elected majority leaders have listened. These proposed bills are just a sample of the punishment to come to a silent majority in Mississippi who dared to support fully funding public schools and teachers last year.
FREE SPEECH ANYONE? Not so fast. HB49 would prohibit for any teacher having or sharing any opinion or ideas about anything political or policy – regardless if broken, at any time near any students or on school or athletic grounds or trips. Break this rule and get a $10,000 fine and fired.
SCHOOL BOARD MEMBERS? HB49 also applies to them, but only anytime they are awake or asleep, regardless of where they are. It is tough to reconcile with HB76 by the same author, which requires candidates to declare a political party. You’re fired!
SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE – NOT HERE! HB50 will have public school teacher paid by your tax dollars teaching creationism from the Bible as a scientific theory. That cutting edge lesson should help us out of 50th place.
MAEP – will only be taught in History class as a relic of the past. HB458 &HB469 would require a full overhaul of the funding formula, and further underfund our last-place schools.
VOUCHERS ANYONE? HB943 will send your public tax dollars to private academies and religious/parochial schools, regardless of what religious views you believe or don’t believe. Want to take a wild guess who will be the lucky ones to get to go to a private school near you on your tax dollars?
SCHOOL CHOICE / ATHLETIC RECRUITING here we come HB1015: Students in underperforming districts will get to go to other better districts and take their local tax dollars with them with HB206. Hope your child is a great ballplayer or runner.
WHEN YOU HAVE A MINUTE: Since teachers have so much spare time, now that recess is also history, HB224 would fine schools $1,500 per day for each time they did not recite the Pledge of Allegiance within the first hour of the day.
FINALLY, CHARTER SCHOOLS: The elephant got its nose under the tent in 2013 for only failing districts. Now, HB1042 would permit these profit schools to operate in A and B districts, statewide, with no approval by local school boards and no district lines – statewide.
That is a sampling of the many proposed bills of GRABITT. If you have an opinion, please go to the Legislative Home Page and reach out to your Senator or House Member before it is too late.
Jay Hughes
District 12 Representative
It ALL starts with education!
