Las Vegas parents we need to keep a close eye on what is happening in Chicago.  I believe that the teachers in this district are brave that they will no longer stand for decisions being made about our educational system that no longer take into account the needs of the whole child and the realities of being a teacher.

How many of our kids are in class with 30 or more kids? Some classes have even 40 kids or more!

The only people who say class size does not matter are the very same people who have never taught in a classroom!

This week schools had to close because the air conditioning systems were broken. Do you think it has anything to do with that the district outsourced all of those positions to outside companies? Now instead of a regular maintenance schedule which keeps long term infrastructure chugging along , our district waits for things to break like air conditioning units then the teachers and students just need to sit tight and wait their place in line. By the time our district gets done paying for emergency repairs and the replacement of multiple units they could have kept those maintenance workers at the same cost with no sacrifice to students missing class or their families who had to scramble for last minute childcare.

Manpower temporary agency is making their cut as the middle man for services provided to students and in the end we are not saving any money.

It is time to stop blaming the honest hardworking teachers and tradespeople who keep our schools running and support our economy through their employment.

As a parent I want solutions for our schools that are about what is best for the whole child based on proven educational research – not just tests! As parents we look at our children for who they are in their entirety which is what they deserve from those charged with educating them. We need to have our teachers backs.