As we prepare for the 2022 Kansas legislative session, I’d like to talk about why local board of education members should advocate for their schools and how the Kansas Association of School Boards helps our members stay up to date on what’s happening in Topeka and Washington, D.C.
After one of the most contentious election cycles in recent memory, a Board member might think, “Advocacy?! Count me out. I want to focus on what’s best for kids, not argue about politics.” As a former Board member and current lobbyist, I’d like to respectfully push back on that sentiment.
Informing lawmakers about your schools’ accomplishments, challenges and needs is an essential part of school board leadership. Through their actions, board members represent the community and help foster understanding and support for their schools. In these challenging times, advocating for Kansas public schools with your legislators isn’t “being political;” it’s simply part of the job.
Whether you’re a veteran Board member or newly elected, you know that concerns about curriculum, funding, and hot-button social issues dominated school board races not only in Kansas but across the nation.
In 2022, Kansas lawmakers may introduce bills on CRT or classroom curricula, graduation requirements, limits on how local boards act in public health emergencies, restrictions on school library books, and scrutiny of the relationship between state and federal funding and student achievement. Whether you were elected to stay the course in your district or shake up the status quo, these bills will significantly impact your local students. KASB will work tirelessly to present accurate, non-partisan information, but local board members will also play an important role in whether these proposed laws help or hurt your school district.
“I’m already juggling a family, work, and my school board gig,” you may say. “How can I possibly keep up with legislation, too?” That’s where your membership in KASB pays dividends.
KASB’s “Advocacy In Action” conference is January 11 and 12 in Topeka. January 11 will be devoted to issue briefings, a lunch with legislators, and advocacy programming at the Kansas state capitol. On January 12, members of the KASB Advocacy Network (KAN) will participate in additional legislative meetings and advocacy training. You can find more information about Advocacy In Action, including a registration link, here. Learn more about the KASB Advocacy Network here.
KASB has a full-time Advocacy Staff which represents our members before the state legislature and Congress. Mark Tallman, Scott Rothschild, and I are in the Statehouse each day of the state legislative session, monitoring committee meetings, testifying at hearings, and working with legislators and other education advocates on behalf of K-12 public schools. We tweet throughout the day and offer a brief, “30,000-foot view” Facebook Live update each afternoon on the KASB Facebook page. And don’t forget our twice-monthly “The Advocate” podcast. Look for “KASB Live Podcast” on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, or Buzzsprout.
KASB members also receive twice-weekly “News Briefs” emails with the latest information on legislative developments. Our website, www.kasb.org, has a wealth of information in our News Room and under the “Advocacy” tab and is updated continuously throughout the session. Members of the KASB Advocacy Network have access to exclusive weekly updates and additional advocacy training. On the Congressional front, KASB members can hone their legislative knowledge by attending advocacy events in Washington, D.C.
There’s an old saying that “You can be at the table, or you can be on the menu” when decisions are being made. Will the legislature be able to dictate classroom content? Will parents continue to bring concerns to their local boards of education, or will state law compel them to take their concerns all the way to Topeka instead? Will taxpayer dollars support public schools or be siphoned off to private schools that don’t serve all students?
Kansas school board members must be at the table in 2022 to advocate for their public-school students, and KASB is honored to support that work.
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