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Home > Blogs > Lakota Schools News and Issues > Archives > 2010 > September > 23
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Billboard campaign sparks battle of words
The Ohio Education Association and the Education Action group are facing off in a battle of words…or press releases.
Read here to find out more about the campaign the EAG launched in southwest Ohio. And read here for the interview I had with the OEA.
Below, I am pasting the press releases from each organization.
Take the facts like adults, OEA School reform group responds to union’s diversionary tactics
MUSKEGON, Mich. - Several days ago, we at the Education Action Group unveiled 25 billboards http://e2ma.net/go/8646934357/3107495/98691342/24830/goto:http://www.oheaexposed.com/billboards.htm in the Greater Cincinnati area, designed to draw public attention to the incredible amount of money local schools are forced to spend due to various provisions in labor contracts.
Our goal is to draw attention to a report we issued last spring, titled "Ohio Teacher Contracts - <http://e2ma.net/go/8646934357/3107495/98691343/24830/goto:http://eagfdn.org/documents/Ohioteachercontractsanalysis_000.pdf> <http://e2ma.net/go/8646934357/3107495/98691344/24830/goto:http://eagfdn.org/documents/Ohioteachercontractsanalysis_000.pdf> The Black Hole of School Spending."; <http://e2ma.net/go/8646934357/3107495/98691345/24830/goto:http://eagfdn.org/documents/Ohioteachercontractsanalysis_000.pdf> In that report, we outline costly and questionable union contract provisions from schools throughout the area, so taxpayers can get a better idea of where their dollars go.
We also hope to encourage residents to personally inspect their local school's labor contracts, and determine for themselves whether education dollars are being spent in the wisest manner possible, particularly in this era of teacher layoffs and program cuts.
But predictably, some responded to our information campaign with an attitude of "kill the messenger."
The Ohio Education Association, the state's largest teachers union, issued a statement suggesting that we're the type of group that shows up to spread an "anti-union, anti-public school" message during election cycles, then disappears again.
The statement also accuses EAG of being a Republican front group that's promoting vouchers for private and religious schools.
The fact is that we're a year-round non-profit organization that advocates for financial and structural reform in public schools. Rather than being anti-public education, we advocate for policies that can save public education from its own self-destructive tendencies, so it can better serve students and survive into the future.
We are affiliated with no political party, but have taken a strong stand for empowering parents to choose the best educational options for their children.
The OEA's critical assessment of our organization is nothing more than a diversionary tactic, produced by the union's professional spin doctors.
"Does it really matter who we are or how we operate, as long as we pass on accurate information about school spending to the citizens of the Cincinnati area?" said EAG Vice President Kyle Olson. "The information in our report came directly from teacher contracts
and employees of local school districts. We didn’t make anything up.
"We suspect that the OEA wants to knee-cap us so people won't look at the information we provided. If they do, they might come to the conclusion that we're right about high labor costs in Southwest Ohio schools. By portraying us as the evil outsiders, union leaders hope people will ignore our message and keep giving them and school administrators a blank check.
“We believe Ohio residents are smart enough to look at the information we present and decide for themselves whether it has merit. We don’t believe they’re going to ignore our important message about how their tax dollars are spent, just because self-serving union leaders call us nasty names.”
Focus on the benefits of investing in public schools Recently, a conservative, out-of-state organization has blanketed the southwestern Ohio area with billboards that question spending on public schools.
With these billboards, the group, calling itself Education Action Group, has brought its campaign to Ohio. Finding information about the Education Action Group isn’t easy. A visit to EAG’s website reveals the group’s philosophy, with links to anti-union organizations and anti-union commentaries, but does not disclose any financial information. What do 25 billboards cost? The group will not say. Who is backing them? They refuse to reveal this as well. In fact, for a group claiming dedication to transparency, EAG reveals nothing about its finacials.
EAG Director Kyle Olson says his organization is non-partisan and not opposed to public schools. The Michigan Education Association says EAG is a front group for Republican Party activists who want to expand the use of tax-financed vouchers for private and religious schools.
It has become the trend during election campaigns for anti-levy and anti-pulic education groups like EAG to surface, speaking out against public education, and then to retreat again once the elections are over. For educators, however, the work of preparing our students for the future and promoting the importance of public education isn’t seasonal. Educators do this work each and every day.
Members of the Ohio Education Association, as well as administrative groups like the Ohio School Board Association and the Ohio Association of School Business Officers work together to provide solid financial information to voters about their local school levies. Despite intermittent negative campaigns, we know Ohioans support the basic right of every student to attend a high-quality public school. We think most members of the public understand how teachers spend much of their own money toward books and other classroom supplies, even though their salaries lag behind those of private sector individuals with comparable college and graduate school educations.
Investing in pre-school, primary and secondary education now will provide calculable returns in the future. Providing our children with the education they need to compete in the emerging global economy is not only good for their futures — it’s good for Ohio. A well-rounded, high quality primary and secondary education leads to high earnings and economically stronger and stable communities. Strong support for local schools promotes community prosperity and higher home values too.
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