**UPDATE**
1:00 am on August 25, 2018
On August 24th, the press conference referenced in this article took place. A video of that event has been embedded below.
MEDIA ROLL CALL
(media outlets with representatives present)
Macon Media (me)
Trappalachia (2)
WNCC-FM/WFSC-AM
The Franklin Press (photgrapher only)
PRESS RELEASE
Red4EdNC
August 14, 2018
Teachers across North Carolina want to alert state leaders that the momentum from the May 16 Rally for Respect will be channeled into specific strategies to bring about NC legislative action.
On August 24, 2018, teacher leaders representing Red4EdNC, a nonprofit, non-partisan organization of NC teachers, will lead town hall / press conferences in eight locations across NC: Macon County, Asheville, Winston-Salem, Charlotte, Durham, Raleigh, Goldsboro and Greenville.
Here in the Far West, we will hold our press conference in front of the Macon County Courthouse at 5pm.
Red4EdNC released the document on July 4, 2018. Here is a sampling of the coverage we received:
Modeled on the Declaration of Independence, the declaration lists NC teachers’ grievances and outlines a vision to rectify these conditions.
The declaration calls for the formation of a NC Teacher Congress, a representative body of NC teachers. The Congress (once constituted through a strategy defined on the group’s website, red4ednc.com) will determine and articulate the most critical legislative priorities of teachers statewide. They will also create a schedule of collective actions teachers intend to take if those priorities are not addressed in the legislative session starting in January 2019 and ending, typically, in mid to late summer.
At the press event, Red4EdNC teacher leaders will “take attendance” of which legislators are present. A couple of teachers and a parent will speak briefly to how the itemized grievances are manifest in their classrooms as the traditional school year gets under way. Elected leaders will then be presented with a signed copy of the declaration for study and consideration.
According to Red4EdNC Founder Angela Scioli, “It is important for legislators to hear that while we are heading back to school with enthusiasm and a determination to do the very best for our students, the vast majority of NC teachers are not satisfied with the learning conditions for students nor the working conditions for teachers in North Carolina’s public, including charter, schools. We will not sit back and allow messaging that claims otherwise to dominate the airwaves, especially in a crucial election year. We will use our collective voices and power to force change in policy. Today is another step in that process.”
Upon release of the declaration, Red4EdNC set a goal to have teachers from at least 100 different NC school districts publicly sign the document. As of this release, teachers from 104 districts have participated.
Here is where we currently stand with contacts and signers:
Dear Jim & Kevin,
(I think your spam traps killed my emails to your personal email addresses, so trying the official route)
I hope this note finds you both doing well.
There is a new public education advocacy group in the state which has been quite busy since May. We are Red4EdNC. In many ways, we are the logical progression of the May 16th march in Raleigh. You can get the full picture at Red4EdNC.com.
Our next step was to obtain the signatures of teachers from across the state who would publicly support the Declaration. We were able to obtain at least 106 signatures from the 115 LEAs in the state including from teachers in all LEAs in the 50th Senate and House 120th.
The next step is the holding of press conferences across the state on August 24th. Currently, those are scheduled for Buncombe, Macon, Forsyth, Mecklenburg, Durham, Wake, Wayne, and Pitt counties.
The presser in Macon will be in front of the Macon Courthouse Friday, August 24th at 5pm. We will be making a few brief remarks and answering questions.
Additionally, and this is where the two of you come in, we would like the opportunity to formally present you with the Declaration....we are following similar protocol across the state and inviting state representatives from the respective district where the press conference is to be held.
The agenda is:
1. Welcome
2. Possibly take attendance,
3. About a five minute speech as to why we are advancing the Declaration, possibly followed by a couple of other teacher and/or parent voices
4. Presentation of the Declaration to the two of you.
Whole event shouldn't go longer than 30 minutes.
Specifically invited are members of the WNC press and the two of you. Beyond that the invitation is to the general public.
If you have any questions about the event, the Declaration, or Red4EdNC, please let me know.
Best,
John
###END PRESS RELEASE###
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Published at 2:50 pm on August 14, 2018
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