On Tuesday, March 3, 2020, Alabama voters went to the polls and voted on Amendment 1, which gave them the opportunity to replace the state’s existing elected state school board with a new education commission appointed by the governor. Overwhelmingly, the people voted NO, and therefore, Alabamians will continue to elect their state school board to make decisions on their behalf for K-12 education in our state.
Which leads us to the next question: now what?
Now that the citizens have reaffirmed their right to vote on the state school board, it is critical that they be empowered to hold their elected officials accountable for results. Strong leadership at the state level is imperative to the success of Alabama’s students. Alabama currently ranks 49th and 52nd for reading and math achievement in the nation, respectively. Now is the time for our citizens to engage more in the statewide public education debate. Below are some steps we can take to become more involved with our state school board members:
- Learn who your state school board member is and contact them when necessary. Alabama has 8 school board districts across the state. Click here to visit the Secretary of State’s website to find your district and click here to learn who your board member is and how to contact them.
- Tune in to the monthly Alabama State School Board meetings. The State School Board meets the 2nd Thursday of every month in Montgomery. They hold a regular-scheduled meeting at 10:00 am followed by a work session at 11:00 am. Three important things happen at these meetings: (1) the State Department of Education presents new initiatives, progress, and updates on their work, (2) school board members discuss actions to improve student achievement, and (3) school board members vote on resolutions that guide the State Department of Education’s work. These meetings are live streamed here. If you’re not able to watch the meetings live, each meeting and work session is archived here.
- Sign up for A+ Education Partnership’s weekly curated education news email, The Gist. A large part of our work is keeping up with important policy decisions being made at the state level, and helping the public stay informed. Each Friday, we round up the most important state and national education news, along with specific Alabama education policy updates, and send them directly to your inbox. Click here to sign up. Click here to see the archive of our previous emails to get caught up. We also have social media accounts you can follow for updates, and we live-tweet most state board of education meetings. Visit our website and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or LinkedIn.
- Let us know what education issues matter most to you. We want to know what is important to you and our students. Click here to let us know what you think!
A+ is committed to being a voice for students where any statewide policy decisions are being made. If you have a specific education policy question, email [email protected] and we’ll provide you with any information and research we have on the topic. Together we can create #GreatSchoolsforEveryChild.
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