There’s More Than Fundraising to PTA
Did you know that PTA is one of the country’s strongest educational lobbies? Historically, PTA:
· established kindergarten
· initiated child labor laws
· championed prohibition of selling cigarettes to minors
The California State PTA:
· helped place Prop 98 on the ballot – California’s constitutional funding guarantee for schools
· advocated for K-3 class size reduction
All of the above were considered controversial at the time and faced heated opposition.
California State PTA’s priorities are:
· advocacy
· engagement
· communication
Today California PTA’s most pressing issue is school funding. A 2007 Stanford Coalition study found California’s schools underfunded by as much as 40%. A March 2005 Rand study found that “California schools lag behind other states on almost every objective measurement.” Per-pupil spending has droppedsince the passage of Proposition 13 in 1978, and is well below the national average.
Yes on Props Y & YY!
Congratulations on the Measure Y and YY campaign. Y passed in November 2010 with 60.86% of the vote and YY passed with 67.63% of the vote. We have a lot to be proud of and a lot to be thankful for.
Congratulations also newly elected Board members, Laurie Lieberman and Nimish Patel and re-elected Oscar de la Torre and Ralph Mechur.”