I don’t get into religion much other than to say it should be kept separate from the state.
But let me take this opportunity to wish you a Happy Easter and a very happy spring.
It has been a difficult, stressful year for everyone.
Some of us have lost members of our families to COVID.
We should all get vaccinated to stop the spread of this disease, to protect ourselves, our families, and our community.
I had my two shots (of Moderna), had no side effects, and feel protected. But I am still wearing a mask and taking other necessary precautions. Listen to the science.
There are mixed reports about whether the virus is winding down or gearing up for another surge. The latter is facilitated by the sizable number of people who refuse to get vaccinated.
No one who was vaccinated has died. It is possible to get it again, but in a much milder version that is not life-threatening.
If ever there was a time when civic cooperation is needed, it is now.
Enjoy the day. Enjoy the daffodils, the crocuses, the hyacinths, and forsythia and other signs of the Earth’s renewal.
Get outside if the weather is beautiful, as it is here in New York, and enjoy the beginning of a fresh and hopeful new season.
Do something generous for someone who needs your help.
Happy Easter to you and yours, too! Thank you for your passionate, ongoing advocacy for public education and for all of us who have dedicated our lives to kids.
Thanks for your personal message to all & may the Vaccine reach down to 12 yr olds soon & all school ages quickly after that. XO.
A very Happy Easter to you, too! Thank you for letting others know the importance of getting vaccinated. One of my friends put life into perspective when it comes to life, “It is not about you, it is about others.” Get the vaccine. Everyone gets the reward.
Yes, Happy Easter, Happy Passover, Happy Spring, Happy Happy Everything and thank you!
Sent from my iPhone
>
Good morning Diane and everyone,
Happy Easter and Spring and whatever you celebrate today! My husband and I, both teachers, are looking forward to our second Pfizer vaccine on Thursday. We didn’t have any reactions to the first vaccine. We drank a lot of water and some sports drinks before the first shot and plan to do so again. But even if you do have some side effects from the vaccine, that is a GOOD thing. Your body is working to create immunity. Rest as much as you can and don’t overexert yourself. I probably will wear masks and gloves in grocery stores and other tight, public spaces for the rest of my life. Why not? And to anti-maskers, I would say the following. When you go to the hospital to have your operation, do you want your doctors and nurses to wear masks, gloves, gowns and to sterilize their instruments? Or would you be happier if they didn’t do those things? In terms of the vaccine, the truth is we don’t know all that we should know about it. It’s new. But sometimes you have to take a risk and a leap. We do that when we get out of bed in the morning. I think of all those people who were generous enough to be part of the vaccine trials to test these vaccines for the rest of us. Thank you!
Received my second Pfizer on Easter Sunday. First timers wrapped around the building. My arm is a little sore. At the moment tree pollen is my greater concern.
My husband and I have been helping a family, in which Mom became sick with Covid. She is a “long-hauler” and lives with severe chest pain, shortness of breath, nausea and vomiting. She has bad days, some taking her to the ED or her physician’s office. Her doctor has warned her that she may never regain full health. She is 43, married, with 4 children. Her youngest is 3 and is terrified of the word, sick.
Please get vaccinated. There is much misinformation being spread. If you are concerned, talk with your family physician, the person who knows your health and is committed to keeping you well and doing no harm to you.
And even if you’re not into college basketball, you can certainly appreciate this buzzer beating shot by Suggs to send the ZAGS to the championship game! WOW! What a game! GO ZAGS!!!
http://www.espn.com/video/clip?id=31191599
Happy Spring, everyone! The house finches have been here for 10 days already https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hisjOh6_-cs Today the song sparrow arrived https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DU9lkQEP8_g We are pretending it’s just an ordinary Sunday. Looking forward to putting on a combined Easter/ Mother’s Day family meal in May, when all four of us will be 2 shots + 2 weeks.
It sure was a beautiful day.
Have a great week, all.
Diane I didn’t know where to put this, but I thought you’d like to see it. It’s a DRAFT of a letter to President Biden from a coalition of Adult Education groups. It was sent to the National Literacy Association list serve for comments and has been through several revisions.
I post this here because I thought you’d like to see it but also because someone on the list suggested that perhaps teachers unions or other groups here might want sign the letter and, at least, to know about it. Time is short, however . . . but I did want to let you know about it.
If you have any suggestions, I’m sure they will be glad to hear. And I’D like to hear what you think of the idea to give it a theme entitled: “No One Left Behind.”
Below is the latest cover letter to everyone on the list, and then the draft of the letter itself.
And Happy Eastertime to you also! CBK
COVER LETTER
Dear colleagues:
Attached please find the current–and hopefully semi-final–draft of a letter to President Biden, proposing a more robust nationwide adult, career and technical education program.
Many–if not all–of you will see elements or changes that you suggested. You are all an inspiration. Since beginning to teach ESL to adults in the early 1980s, I have found in adult educators the same selfless spirit of service and love for the human race, regardless of our students’ backgrounds and financial situations. In adult education, we leave no one behind. In fact, could we use “No One Left Behind” as a slogan or name for this ad hoc group?
David Rosen has helped significantly with this draft. He connected many of us — including Deborah Kennedy, with whom I finally spoke this afternoon.
Ms. Kennedy shared with me the urgency of contacting the Senate Health Committee, which will look at re-authorizing WIOA in the coming days. She also shared the opinion that our letter should have a long-term focus, since Biden’s new team has probably already made decisions on short-term policy.
Now I ask each of you: Any and all suggestions for making this letter better? Referrals to any other people or organizations we should contact for input and possible endorsements? Do we need a slogan or name for this ad hoc group, such as “No One Left Behind”? As noted at the bottom of the attached letter, we will copy the completed Biden letter to: Miguel Cardona, U.S. Secretary of Education
U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (all members)
Office of Career, Technical and Adult Education
Please suggest any other persons or organizations that should be sent copies.
Moving forward, John Mears
BIDEN LETTER
April 5, 2021
President Joseph Biden
1600 Pennsylvania Ave. NW
Washington, DC 20500
Dear President Biden:
Thank you for leading the fight against the pandemic with a vigorous national strategy. Now we need an equally robust national strategy to face another burgeoning crisis in the USA: under-educated adults.
We, the undersigned, are lifelong learners and educators who proudly work to fill the educational needs of U.S. adults nationwide. We are delighted to see that your American Jobs Plan “will better tailor services to workers’ job seeking and career development needs through investments in Expanded Career Services and the (Workforce Investment and Opportunities Act) Title II adult literacy program.” However, we want to ensure that all U.S. adults who need foundational skills — including English language services for immigrants, regardless of their ability to work — will be served.
According to the National Center for Educational Statistics, at least 43 million U.S. adults have low literacy skills. The lack of skilled, well-trained workers in our nation caused nearly 7 million jobs to be unfilled in the U.S., even before the pandemic, according to the Labor Department. U.S. industry and business leaders have been sounding the alarm about this problem since the 1990s, yet opportunities for adults to get basic education and job training have eroded substantially in the past dozen years. The deficiency in job training hurts our economy, our competitiveness on the world stage, and efforts to “Build Back Better.”
Your ambitious goals of naturalizing immigrants bring additional challenges. Millions of immigrants need to learn English as a Second Language (ESL) and get on the path to U.S. citizenship.
The U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Career, Technical and Adult Education (OCTAE) needs to be supported, strengthened and better funded to meet current challenges.
Nationwide, many states and communities already offer adult basic (or foundational) skills education programs; but since the 2008 recession, many of these programs have been drastically curtailed or eliminated due to budget cuts. Surviving programs have increasingly relied on federal tax dollars through WIOA – the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act — and matching state and local funds, which may also be cut.
The COVID-19 pandemic has further eroded adult education programs by forcing most instruction online, through virtual education platforms. Although online instruction presents daunting challenges, especially for the economically disadvantages, it also offers exciting opportunities for educational programs that can be offered nationwide.
Especially given the educational challenges that come with your ambitious plans for immigration reform, we propose the following:
• Increased funding. The Coalition on Adult Basic Education is requesting $1 billion initially, and $810 million more in annual appropriations for adult education programs. Senator Jack Reed of Rhode Island proposes that WIOA funding be doubled in the next five years.
• Free lifelong learning opportunities should be made available both in-person and online nationwide. These programs should include: adult basic education (foundational literacy and numeracy), job training, digital literacy, ESL and citizenship classes, adult high school diploma programs, high school equivalency programs, older adult programs, and other essential educational services for adults. If offered online, these programs could be accessed anywhere in the USA. However, in-person instruction is preferable, and it should be expanded and offered through a wide range or organizations and institutions: district K-12 school systems, community colleges, community-based organizations, public libraries, faith-based organizations, corrections institutions, and others.
• A new “amnesty” program for immigrants. In the late 1980s, many adult education programs in the USA mobilized to facilitate President Reagan’s amnesty program (the Immigration Reform and Control Act) by gearing up quickly to offer classes in ESL and citizenship to many thousands of immigrants who are now proud U.S. citizens. We believe that a similar program would admirably serve our nation’s economy and civil society, and reward millions of honest, hard-working but undocumented immigrants with well-deserved legitimacy.
We, our organizations, and thousands of our colleagues would be delighted to work with your administration to develop new and expanded educational programs for adults nationwide.
The stakes are high, the need is great, and the time is now.
Sincerely,
John Mears
ESL teacher, LAUSD
Sharon Bonney
CEO, Coalition on Basic Education
Michele Diecuch
Senior Director of Programs, ProLiteracy
David J. Rosen
President, Newsome Associates
Co-founder and Steering Committee Member, Open Door Collective
Board Member, ProLiteracy
Cynthia Eagleton
CFT Local 4681
#AdultEducationMatters
adulteducationmatters.blogspot.com
Christine Ramirez,
President, California Council for Adult Education/Los Angeles Metropolitan Section
Sean Abajian
Principal, El Rancho Adult Education Center
SEVERAL OTHERS
After the U.S. Congress in 1986 enacted the law that pharmaceutical companies have ZERO liability for injuries caused by their vaccines, the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) was established. VAERS is a passive, voluntary system to report injuries and therefore injuries and deaths are underreported. As of March 26, 2021, VAERS reported the following reactions to Covid-19 “vaccines”:
2249 deaths
4824 hospitalizations
8287 urgent care visits
7813 office visits
379 anaphylaxis
435 bell’s palsy
I am a 40-year veteran special education teacher and have worked with vaccine damaged children. Vaccines injure and kill. Mainstream media is controlled by only six corporations, and about 70% of news media revenue is sponsored by drug companies. Follow the money. This whole manufactured virus crisis is to cause fear, panic, and guilt onto the public to coerce people to get injected with an experimental gene therapy to enrich drug companies, enlarge corporate power, usher in AI surveillance and control, reduce our civil liberties, and possibly destroy human health and civilization as we know it.
Some of us remember the children damaged by polio, rubella, measles, smallpox and know adults disabled by shingles, mumps, HIV/AIDS, lack of antibiotics to treat illnesses. I hope that people make decisions on whether to receive Covid vaccinations after speaking with their physician and consulting CDC data, rather than stories making the rounds on the internet. If you choose to not be vaccinated, please wear your mask, wash your hands often, practice safe distancing from others, and do not spread lies and misinformation about Covid vaccines.
Thank you, Diane. Wishing you the very best on Thursday and in your recovery.
But that’s the thing, keeping it completely separate is imposible. Id you keep it completely separate, that then still serves the fundimentals of atheism and you’ve failed, qed. To not even serve atheism is a bit of a tricky book. I can see recognizing holidays as serving neither religion as long as nothing else about the holidays are being taught. Why should one group have a tax payer funded indoctrination camp? Whether there is a god or not should not be what’s important about schools. Public schools to not exist for the goal begging or denying the legitimacy of any religion including atheism and i claim any true atheist would axiomatically be forced to agree. Despite the very obviousness with which party the slimey school staff align themselves, neither party has a Monopoly over truth. Furthermore duality is a fundimentaly flawed logic system as far as logic goes in the minds of three dimensional organisms inhabiting a four dimensional world. Take your two dimensional thinking structure and put it up your lower life form asses.