Monday, August 23, 2010

A Message from UEA President Sharon Gallagher-Fishbaugh

Dear Members and Staff,

The Utah Education Association has been very active in working to make sure the Education Jobs Bill funding, which Congress passed earlier this month, is something that we as a state will be able to benefit from.

A BIG THANK YOU goes out to many of you who took time from your summer to contact your Congressional representatives to assure the passage of this important legislation.

Since the passage of this legislation, we have been meeting with the Governor and other state leaders to make sure they understand the benefits this funding will provide. For those that are not aware, Congress passed a $26 billion jobs bill to benefit public education across the country. Of the $26 billion, Utah will be awarded $101 million. This money can be used to recall teachers and other building level employees, reinstate lost instructional days, reduce class sizes, or fill anticipated funding shortfalls for the 2010-2011 school year.

This past week the Governor said he will be making application for the $101 million. There are some challenges we are working through in educating the legislature as to the positive impact these monies will have on our state’s economy. It is anticipated that there will be a special session called as this money is distributed to the local districts. We are trying to expedite this process in order to enable the monies to be made available as quickly as possible. As you have conversations with your legislators, please share your thoughts related to this funding investment to our schools, children and economy.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact our staff here at the UEA. Get in touch with Kory Holdaway at kory.holdaway@utea.org or Jay Blain at jay.blain@utea.org, and they can answer many of your questions or visit our web site for the status related to this funding.

Sharon Gallagher-Fishbaugh M.A., N.B.C.T
UEA President
801-266-4461
Toll Free 800-594-8996