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CAMPAIGN FOR EXCELLENCE |
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MEASURE A CAMPAIGN ANNOUNCES “YES
on A” COMMUNITY RALLY For Immediate Release: April 25, 2005 State Senator Joe Simitian and Assemblyman Ira Ruskin To Speak at Rally Palo Alto, California -- The Campaign for Excellence, the organization of volunteers dedicated to passing Measure A in support of Palo Alto Unified School District (PAUSD) schools and students, recently invited the public to attend its April 30th “YES on A” Community Rally, and also announced it has surpassed its milestone goal of obtaining 2,000 public endorsers. “YES on A” Community RallyHosted by the American Association of University Women (AAUW) Palo Alto Branch and the Campaign for Excellence, the “YES on A” Community Rally takes place Saturday, April 30, 2005, from 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. at the Lucie Stern Community Center, 1305 Middlefield Road, Palo Alto, California. The festive rally features remarks from California State Senator Joe Simitian, Assemblyman Ira Ruskin, and various educational leaders and community members, along with fun and live entertainment from local musical groups Hey Mom and Backlight. Everyone, especially students and children, are cordially invited to attend. “Nothing is more important than the education of our children,” said Lucy Stone, president of the AAUW Palo Alto Branch. “The ‘Yes on A’ Community Rally demonstrates our commitment to maintaining the excellence of our schools, the futures of our students, and the quality of our community life.” Simitian and Ruskin Support Measure A“Until and unless the State accepts its responsibility to adequately fund our schools, our ability to provide quality classroom instruction for every kid depends upon our local voters. Measure A isn’t ‘extra,’ it’s essential!” said California State Senator Joe Simitian. “The Palo Alto Unified School District needs Measure A to prevent further cutbacks in educational programs and future cutbacks in teachers,” said California Assemblyman Ira Ruskin. “At the same time, be assured that I am committed to fighting for every public education dollar possible.” Over 2,000 Public SupportersThe Campaign for Excellence has surpassed its ambitious goal of obtaining over 2,000 public endorsers. “We now have 2,252 individuals who publicly support Measure A,” said Gary Fazzino, Campaign for Excellence co-chair. “To my knowledge, this is the largest number of public endorsers for any ballot measure in the history of Palo Alto. It’s only April, and we’re still collecting names.” More Organizational EndorsementsFurther demonstrating wide community and organizational support for Measure A, the Campaign for Excellence also announced endorsements from the Palo Alto Chamber of Commerce, the Palo Alto District of the Silicon Valley Association of Realtors, California School Employees Association (CSEA), the League of Women Voters of Palo Alto, American Association of University Women Palo Alto Branch, the Palo Alto City Council, Palo Alto Community Child Care, the Palo Alto Council of PTAs, Palo Alto Educators Association, the entire PAUSD Board of Education, Santa Clara County Supervisor Liz Kniss, and U.S. Representative Anna Eshoo. Why PAUSD Schools Need Measure AThe parcel tax now in place, which provides $5.5 million in critical funding for PAUSD schools, expires next year. In addition, PAUSD has lost $4.4 million in annual state funding over the last three years, while enrollment growth has added $3 million in annual costs. To balance the budget, PAUSD has been forced to make program cuts of $6.5 million and tap $3.4 million in limited emergency reserves. PAUSD program cuts have reduced course offerings in middle and high schools, reduced elementary reading, art and math programs, reduced library hours, and reduced funding for instructional materials, athletics, technology support, and school maintenance. Without Measure A’s $9.3 million annually over six years, PAUSD would be forced to cut an additional $5.5 million in expenditures for the 2006-2007 school year. Serious cuts at the classroom level would result, including consideration of closing an elementary school, laying off as many as 107 teachers (16% of the teaching force), increasing class sizes by as much as 18-40%, and eliminating one elective class each semester for all middle and high school students. Join the Campaign in Support of Measure AAnyone interested in supporting Measure A or obtaining
further information about the Campaign for Excellence is invited to visit
www.campaignforexcellence.org, or Campaign for Excellence Committee * ID# 1274982* Sylvie Way, Treasurer, 320 Kellogg Ave., Palo Alto, CA 94301
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