Effective Citizens Influencing Education: Who Are You? Flip the Status Quo--Know What Little Is Missing

31 August 2005

Effective citizens (under one of our definitions) care about something in life, believe in luck and care about doing good. They are concerned with being fair, and believe in 2nd and 3rd chances. They secure their assets, attributes, and the safety of family, friends and self. They vote and generally will not admit that they did not vote. They understand leverage, waste, savings and the rewards of one?s labor. They resent speculators, question partisan positions and wish they could stand with the 80% in the middle. On any given day, when we pause to think, we understand being proactive, beginning with the end in mind, and putting first things first, thanks to Dr. Stephen Covey and common sense.

So! - Why is it that effective citizens fail, by leaving many children behind, and set up higher future costs and less security. We do not look to be part of the simple 80% middle on this issue, because our starting priority and foundations of agreement are not broad enough. And, we look to solve problems in the middle of the process without reference to the start. We splinter into various interests. We let partisans, biases, misguided knowledge, speculators, short-term artists and lack of civility shortchange our investment in kids and our interactions with each other. Today?s Children, Tomorrow?s Future! ® is just a wishful slogan. So the status quo is to have wishful thoughts as we rely on special interests fragmenting the foundation!

A miniscule shortfall of funding is missing in the formula to accountably reinvest in our future. A total of just $15 billion a year is missing. This compares to $7 trillion in manufacturing and retail sales per year (non-government) to put it into our day-to-day economic perspectives (less than 1/4%). One-third of this is already included in the Federal Education Law but not appropriated for spending in the budgets. At least one-third of this is available via tax reductions given to effective citizens by the 2004 Job Creation Act (they would have to be convinced to give it accountably to the public). Schools and States should have to match the gifts (one-third) to prove they are in the game of delivering a solution. We can show you these facts by state, and county. Make an email request- mailto:e-mail protected from spam bots. It is a simple demographic calculation based on current available knowledge in the field.

The key to flipping over the status quo is communicating the knowledge to each other that if this additional giving were in the right order; elementary school principals could ethically be held accountable for 100% of the children left behind; elementary school principals, with related collaborations could hold communities accountable for delivering 100% of the children to kindergarten ready-to-read. They are the only public servants vested in 100% delivery. Very good people are working hard in urban areas at this from many angles but without; ethical responsibilities and authorities to first reach the poorest of the poor. Neighborhoods are splintered and do not yet see the logistics of 100% as a start to the top for society.

WHAT IF WE WOULD MAKE THIS THE STATUS QUO? The Truth-- Without the gift of Early Reading Skills all children are behind before they even start kindergarten. The Gift-- Only an individual gift delivers early reading skills at age 3, 4 and 5. This gift is the building block to opportunity. It is society?s best (effective and lowest cost) approach to preparing the bottom half of the bottom half (poorest of the poor) to want the opportunities, choices and engagement. The Focus-- When 100% of the children start kindergarten ready to read English the urban school has the resources to meet the requirement of No Child Left Behind.
See http://ulticharnetwork.blogspot.com/. The sole purpose of the character development materials at http://www.usavalues-character.org/ is for schools and effective communities to pull this together for the children and themselves. These gifts are at least three times blessed.

USA VALUES ? CDP, Character Development Programs promotes truth; 1) The gift of Early Reading Skills (the FIRST value) is required for ALL age 3?6 children before they start kindergarten; 2) This individual gift is the key to opportunity; 3) The gift is the most effective and lowest cost approach to preparing at-risk children for opportunities; 4) The principal is vested in 100% of the children starting kindergarten ready-to-read. CDP is a 501(C)(3) business expecting to link families, paid volunteers, early childhood learning and faith-base resources, schools, corporations and agencies to first deliver 100% of the children to be ready-to-read starting in kindergarten. For other press releases and commentary that encourage a response, see http://chardevelactivity.blogspot.com/.

Source: PR Web

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