Dear Friends,
It's been wonderful to be back in Albert Lea and have some down time to recharge a bit after a very long weekend. I was able to attend the Historic Preservation Fair in downtown Albert Lea this week, which showcased the beautiful historic buildings on Broadway. These buildings are part of what make Albert Lea the beautiful city that it is. On Tuesday and Wednesday evenings, Colter and I had the privilege of being part of Family Literacy Night at the Albert Lea Public Library. This is a yearly event is sponsored by the Albert Lea Area Schools and the Public Library. All the kids got to meet Colter the "reading dog," which Colt thought was great fun. This event is such a good example of how our schools work hard to engage kids and families in literacy. It was such fun for me as well, as I've been missing "my kids" (my former students) and got to see so many of them. Thank you to the Albert Lea Schools for inviting me to be a part of this awesome event!
That literacy event was a real reminder to me, and to all of us, of what our education legislation is all about - our kids. They are why I voted for the strongly bipartisan education bill that included $400 million in new funding for schools and early learning programs, spending a total of $1.3 billion more for the next two years than we're spending now in 2014-2015. It also included important reforms to make it easier for highly-qualified teachers to come from other states and begin teaching in Minnesota, as well as a version of my bill to reduce the number of state-mandated testing.
The bipartisan bill was a good bill that made serious investments in our kids and youngest learners. I was disheartened to hear the Governor's broad and hurtful statement this week claiming that Republicans "hate public schools." As a public school teacher of more than 33 years, and as a member of both Education Committees, the disagreements that legislators have with the Governor is not about hating public schools. Disagreement does not equal hate. This name calling and divisive rhetoric shuts down the real conversations that need to happen so we can bridge our differences, and pass an education bill to keep our schools and education services funded.
Seven of my fellow former public school teachers in the House Republican caucus and I sent a letter to the Governor requesting a chance to meet and share our perspective. We want to share with the Governor our concerns about his proposal, and see if we can further bridge our differences and show the Governor that policy disagreements don't have to be personal. We all care for school kids, and want them to have a great education, and our focus needs to be on them, rather than partisan bickering.
Lastly, I want to wish all a safe and happy Memorial Day weekend. Take time this weekend to remember those who fought and died for our freedoms here in our country. We are blessed to be the most free nation in the world, and have our heroic servicemen and women to thank. I hope you'll be able to attend a Memorial Day service in your community.
Have a great weekend,
Peggy Bennett
State Representative, District 27A
rep.peggy.bennett@house.mn
651-296-8216
@PeggyABennett
www.facebook.com/reppeggybennett