The Report Card • Wednesday, April 5, 2023
Welcome to Week 13 – the last full week of the 2023 Session of the Maryland General Assembly. This is The Report Card, Strong Schools Maryland’s 2023 Session Newsletter.
This week, the General Assembly passed the FY24 budget, showing us that they prioritize Public Education and World Class public schools. The work continues, but this is a promising first step.
Keep an eye on your inboxes and our social media pages for any last minute actions that we'll need you to be a part of before Sine Die on Monday!
⏱️ LEGISLATIVE MINUTE
This week, we're highlighting awesome Maryland delegates Stephanie Smith and Ben Barnes. Both Delegate Barnes and Delegate Smith have been highlighted in the Legislative Spotlight before, but we're giving them yet another moment to shine because of how vigorously they fought for World Class public schools in the 2023 session.
Delegates Barnes and Smith both committed to going above and beyond the recommendations of school funding from the Senate, the Governor, and the House of Delegates – suggesting $1,000,000,000 (that's a BILLION dollars!) to ensure the drive towards World Class public schools.
Delegates Barnes and Smith's tenacious advocacy built on the foundation laid by Governor Moore and the House of Delegates without pushing to spend more public money on private school voucher programs. Reaffirming their belief in the value of public education while being responsible financial stewards of taxpayer money.
If you see Delegate Stephanie Smith or Delegate Ben Barnes, be sure to give them a high-five for public education advocates across Maryland (or click here to tweet a digital high five to these true blue Blueprint Champions)!
📅 This week, Strong Schools Maryland will be monitoring the bills we've worked to pass throughout session; as of the writing of this newsletter (because session closes out on Monday), there are no hearings scheduled for bills we are supporting.
🫱🏿🫲🏻 GET INVOLVED
📅 Drop-In Opportunities
APR 10 @ 10AM and 4PM: Hop on zoom with our Local Organizer, Maya, to prepare testimony for upcoming bill hearings. She'll provide guidance and talking points for Team Leaders and Team Members who want to testify in front of the General Assembly. RSVP
🥳 Upcoming Events
Outcome Measures Workshop – Workshop and provide feedback on outcomes and measurement of the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future. RSVP as soon as possible on Eventbrite. Here are the dates of each workshop and what they will focus on:
5/4 - Pillars 1 and 2 targets
5/18 - Pillars 2 and 3 targets
6/1 - Pillars 3 and 4 targets
If you can't make it to the workshops or just have a lot to say on how the Blueprint is measured, you can also provide feedback here: https://forms.gle/Qy8iQWXmnSX5tbXq6
The AIB is not meeting this week, but the Outcome Measures Workgroup will meet on Tuesday, April 11th, at 3pm, and the AIB will have their regularly scheduled meeting on Thursday April 13th at 1pm.
🪧 Start or Join a Team of 10
In 2020, people like you stood up, spoke out, and passed the Blueprint for Maryland's Future.
In 2023, we want you to help us make sure that Maryland lawmakers #KeepThePromise of World Class Schools: Sign up here to start or join a Team of 10 in your county – we're going to need all the help we can get.
Always keep an 👁️ on this space for more opportunities to meet us at the statehouse.
That's it for Week 13. Next week, we'll give you a brief wrap up on Session 2023, and tell you where and when to find our End of Session Report.
Please forward this to a friend, neighbor, or co-worker who wants to get the latest on the Blueprint in their inbox.
For the Future,
Strong Schools Maryland