There are MANY opportunities to prevent Jeffco’s drastic budget cuts, but time is running out. Helping 3A & 3B to pass will save school libraries & also help all of Jeffco Schools – buildings, programs, positions, and especially students!
How many of these activities have you participated in? Don’t look back and wish you would have done more.
Hold a Street Sign for 1 Hour
Despite all the 3A-3B publicity you may have seen, most Jeffco voters don’t even know about it at all. At a moderately busy intersection, you can reach over 4,000 voters in just 1 hour by simply holding a sign and waving. The teacher-librarian group is running this event called “40,000 Votes“. Watch the 3 minute video and donate your 1 hour!
Donate to Mike’s RV Project
Mike took out a $7,000 loan and has been driving his RV to Chad’s Grill everyday & all around town. He is offering great “perks” if you can make a donation.
Walk the Neighborhood
Extensive research has been done to determine exact addresses of voters who are likely to say yes to 3A & 3B. These potential voters will say yes if they simply see you and receive a special handout. All you have to do is sign up here to walk and deliver the handouts. If all the prepared packets are delivered, it is a GUARANTEE that 3A & 3B will pass. The last event is at Drake Middle School (12550 West 52nd Ave) at 9:00 AM on Saturday, October 13. Please sign up and bring your walking shoes!
Be Active on Facebook
Facebook is a great way to be involved, raise awareness, show support, and motivate others. Here are quick and easy things that can make a huge impact:
- LIKE STUFF! (posts, group pages, user comments, images, etc)
- ADD COMMENTS
- SHARE: Use the “Share” link on important content with your Facebook friends
- EVENTS: Use the “Invite” button with your Facebook friends
- Important Facebook Pages:
- Support School LIBRARIES
- Support Jeffco Schools (the main campaign page)
- Friends of Jeffco Music
- Outdoor Lab
- Instructional Coaches
Get on the Campaign Mailing List
This is where you will receive critical email updates. Look for the signup form on the right side of the page.
Educate Yourself
Spend a few minutes watching the short videos and reading the info on the front, main campaign page – www.SupportJeffcoSchools.com. They have done a great job summarizing the most important information. It’s much easier to educate others once you know the important things yourself.
Get Involved with Great Ed Colorado
Great Education Colorado is spearheading the “Year of the Student” project to address the embarrassing state wide funding situation. Half of Jeffco’s income comes from the state and Colorado is at the very bottom compared to the country.
Help with Phone Banking
Most of our voters are seniors and use traditional phones heavily. A rented facility is available on various dates and times, with phones provided. Just as in the neighborhood walks, a researched list of likely voters is prepared. All you have to do is show up to the phone bank location, follow the suggested script, and inform the voter about 3A-3B – EASY. Click here to sign up.
Display a Car Sign
This is easy and FREE! All Jeffco employees are allowed to have this sign attached to their car in the school parking lot! Download the sign here, print it, and tape it to your inside back windows.
Get a Yard Sign
8,000 signs have already been distributed and are hard to find. You can always print a small one and put it in your home window.
Buy & Wear a 3A-3B T-shirt
Look for the “Buy Now” button on the right side of the page. Once you get it, wear it often, especially to big events.
Enter the “My Jeffco Art Contest”
Win a $20 Gift Card of Your Choice plus lunch with Dr. Cindy Stevenson, Superintendent of Jeffco Public Schools. Click here for more info.
Attend School Board Meetings
It’s very important that well respected educators & parents attend school board meetings. There are a few outspoken anti-education people (known as ‘the crazies’) who attend these meetings. They use bullying techniques and are often very loud and display inappropriate behavior. Your attendance & voice can help to level their negativity and damaging actions.
Share Your Library Story
How has a school library made a difference for you or someone you know? We want to hear your story! Use our Contact form.
——– PAST EVENTS ——–
Walk in the Arvada Parade
Visit the Facebook Event.
Walk in the Golden Parade
Visit the Facebook Event.
Posted in : Help
{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
Hello, I am upset that they would even consider cutting from the libraries. Where my boys go at Glennon Heights the library is used for so much like, afterschool clubs, computer time, school work, picking out something to read to take home. The libraian is much needed to help all the students succed. The also need money to continue to buy new books, equipment, and things needed for the kids to continue to learn. If we start cutting funding for our school and the kids right to get a great education, then no wonder the kids today are acting the way they do, because we keep taking away there right to learn.
Times are tough all over, but cutting school librarians is like cutting off your nose to spite your face. In this age of technology, teacher-librarians are even more vital to the success of our students. And research shows that low-income, minority, and ELL students will suffer even more than the general population. We talk about maintaining high standards for education and holding schools accountable, but then take away the tools they need to do the job. Talk about a bad idea!
I realize that with the decline in our economy that budget cuts are not able to be avoided, but cutting librarians at any level is just not appropriate. I teach elementary and due to our lower enrollment our Teacher Librarian was cut to half time in our building. This has been awful for our teaming and for my 4th grade class. Mrs. Miller and I are used to planning units and working together with small groups and this year we can only do this every other week. We have planned a great social studies unit to go with Colorade using Google Docs and it was not as effective due to her schedule. If we are supposed to keep a higher standard, then allow us the adequate number of teacher librarians to do so.
I find it interesting that Jefferson County would require such advanced training for a position they don’t value enough to provide full time employment for. We want to have the best librarians, but we can’t afford to pay them. I guess an easy way to save some money right now is to eliminate an entire position at the middle school level or ½ of one at elementary schools. As a parent of 3 school aged children, I understand that times are tough right now and that cuts need to be made. I don’t believe that the cuts should be made in the realm of teaching our students technology or in the arts. I believe the school should be directing more resources towards technology and arts rather than away from it. Our world is becoming more and more technology based. The kids cannot all have their own computers in their classrooms, but they do use the library computers and are trained by the school librarian in how to use them for their projects and classwork. Being trained in technology will give them the skills they need to be successful in everything they want to do in this world.
We lost our full-time librarian last year. Our library was the social center of the school. Now when parents and members of the community come to our school, the library is almost always closed and dark. Our TL was more than just a librarian. She was the center of our school community. In addition to being a great teacher and an exceptional librarian, our TL wrote (and won) grant proposals, ran the school’s spelling bee, was our technologist (a service now greatly lacking), and encouraged and inspired teachers to be the best they could be in incorporating technology and creative projects into their lessons. So much of this is absent now that she is gone. She provided much of what made our elementary school exceptional. A part-time library position simply does not allow for much more than basic library duties. What makes a school great (and keeps enrollment up) are this “extras”. As a parent and a former paraprofessional at our elementary school, I can tell you that our full-time TL is sorely missed, and we hope to see the return of a full-time TL soon!
How do I even begin to describe what my teacher librarian at my school does and is for me? Simply put…. She is my left arm. She is the extension of my classroom that makes my instruction complete.
Without my teacher librarian Laurie Bell my classroom impact would not be the same for students. When the next essential lesson comes up in CAP, I can count on Laurie to pull all the resources we have around the subject. When I want to add an element of technology to support kids learning, she is there with websites and suggestions in hand. She plans with me, she collaborates with me, she encourages me to try new things and she even helps pick me up when I just need a boost personally. She is an essential part of my ability to prepare all children for a successful future.
Could I function without my left arm? Most likely… but the challenges would be so great the impact would most definitely hurt students in the process and frankly I wouldn’t be the same teacher.
I understand that we are in a budget crisis and I know that the choices are difficult. Eliminating or diminishing my teacher librarian just isn’t the right choice for kids. Taking my left arm is only going to hurt my ability to reach students.
To quote Bethany Hamilton from the movie Soul Surfer “I don’t need easy. I just need possible.” Life without my librarian just really isn’t possible for me. My left arm is just too valuable.