THE BLUEPRINT IS FUNDAMENTAL TO OUR DRIVE FOR RACIAL AND SOCIAL JUSTICE
The Blueprint is fundamental to our drive for racial and social justice.
Yes, overriding the governor’s veto of the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future would mean billions of dollars more for public schools, including expanding career and technical education, community schools, and early childhood education programs.
It would mean increasing staffing levels and what educators are paid. And it would create accountability to make sure all of those new dollars are spent as intended and reach our classrooms. It can be transformational in so many ways.
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But what is sometimes lost in all of the legislative and policy jargon is that there is nothing more fundamental in our collective fight for racial and social justice than making sure the Blueprint is passed and then implemented with fidelity.
Tackling institutional racism means disrupting existing systems—and that is what the Blueprint does by finally fixing our state’s broken funding formula that exacerbates the gaps between students who have more and students who need more.
Click here to email your legislator. Ask them to vote to override the governor’s veto.
When we change how the money flows and move more dollars to target students and school communities in concentrated poverty, then we move from a regressive formula to a progressive one. When we use those new investments to create and support community schools, then we successfully reimagine how schools support students and their families. The students who need more will get more. It’s equity in action.
A successful override of Gov. Hogan’s veto of the Blueprint will end one chapter of our advocacy and start a new one. The next step will be in the implementation of these new funding and policy goals. The legislation envisions implementation taking more than a decade. This fundamental change will require methodical, thoughtful, and deliberate work. We will be ready.
We will organize our work and support faithful implementation at the state and local levels and fight to make sure educator voice is at the table for every key decision.
Click here to call, email, and virtually lobby your legislators to override the governor’s veto. And then get ready to join your local union implementation team where we will ensure the shockwaves of equity that are promised in this work are realized to support our students, schools, and profession.