FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: August 25, 2016
CONTACT: Kristin Sosanie, ksosanie@missouridems.org
JEFFERSON CITY, MO — This morning, as students head back to school, Missouri teachers held a news conference on the importance of education in this year’s gubernatorial race — launching “Teachers for Koster” and saying that Eric Greitens is Wrong for Missouri.
“Having a governor who understands and supports public education is imperative. A strong leader, like Chris Koster, will pull the legislature with him in fully funding the foundation formula,” said Jennifer Black-Cone, a recently retired teacher from Columbia. “Eric Greitens thinks that the dramatic underfunding of schools is no problem, and clearly has no plans to address it. It’s time to stop playing political games with the funding for Missouri schools – Eric Greitens is wrong for Missouri.”
The teachers, all members of NEA and AFT, stood up in Jefferson City today to officially launch “Teachers for Koster” with the Missouri Democratic Party.
“We are committed to making fully funding education a key topic in this year’s gubernatorial contest,” said Beth Miller, a recently retired teacher from Jefferson City. “Chris Koster has consistently shown that he puts students and teachers first. We need a leader that can bring people together and drive what needs to be done to fully fund the foundation formula. So we will be hitting the doors, phones, and airways to talk with Missourians about what’s at stake in this governor’s election and why Chris Koster is the only choice for Missouri.”
WRONG FOR MISSOURI:
ERIC GREITENS NEEDS TO GO BACK TO SCHOOL ON EDUCATION POLICY
Eric Greitens hardly ever talks about education, so we don’t fully know just how bad he would be for Missouri’s schools and teachers. But the silence on this issue is deafening when it comes to showing how little he cares about the crisis in Missouri’s public schools. One thing is certain: on education, Eric Greitens is wrong for Missouri.
For more than a decade, the Missouri legislature has failed to fully fund the foundation formula for K-12 education. Instead of remedying the problem, they lowered the targets and claimed it was fixed. Despite lowering the standards, last year the Missouri still underfunded the foundation formula by $456 million.
Schools have been forced to cut gym, art programs, and after school activities. But most troubling is the fact that 16 districts around the state have taken the more drastic step of moving to a four-day school week because they can’t afford to stay open all week.
Eric Greitens thinks hacking school funding is no problem:
Greitens did not oppose SB86 – which cut $465 million from Missouri’s Foundation Formula:
Question: Last week, the Governor vetoed a bill that he said would’ve lowered the funding for public schools and the formula that a lot of people said they don’t understand in the first place. The question is, do you support increased funding for education K-12 and higher education and if so, how would you pay for it?
Greitens: I got a fantastic education which created a foundation for my future. Here in Missouri, we’re in a place now where only one in three of our fourth graders are reading at proficiency. So how do we address this problem? We need to focus on results. [MSU Debate, 5/10/16]
What Eric Greitens considers a major education problem doesn’t actually exist in Missouri:
Greitens’ main talking point on education is to fight against Common Core – which no longer exists in Missouri. “No one bothered to point out to either Hanaway or Greitens that the fight against Common Core school standards — a fight they promised to lead — is already over. The Legislature ditched Common Core last year after it became a rube-bait bogeyman.” [St. Louis Post-Dispatch Editorial, 6/7/16]
Greitens’ only other education proposal would cut even more money from Missouri’s public schools:
Greitens supports school vouchers. “The Democratic and Republican hopefuls for governor have different views about Nixon’s stance against any sort of public support of private schools. During a campaign stop in St. Louis on Saturday, Koster told St. Louis Public Radio that he would take a similar philosophical view as Nixon.” [St. Louis Public Radio,8/6/16]
Greitens would not have vetoed the 2014 school transfer bill. “Greitens then cited his experience working in places like Bolivia and India where religious organizations helped lower-income children. When asked if he would have signed the 2014 school transfer bill, Greitens replied: ‘I will consider anything where there is quality evidence to show me that this is going to change the lives of our kids.’” [St. Louis Public Radio, 8/6/16]
Missouri needs a governor who not only understands and cares about public education, but can bring people together to get things done.
On education, Eric Greitens is wrong for Missouri.
Read more about why Eric Greitens is Wrong for Missouri at www.wrongformissouri.com
