Governor Jeb Bush's Budget will only Help 4 Teachers in Each County

Governor Jeb Bush unveiled more details about his comprehensive statewide reading initiative, Just Read, Florida! at the State Board of Education meeting in Tallahassee this week.

He advocates that in addition to faculty and university costs, the public school based teachers and administrators will have their tuition paid by this program, which is administered by FSU. Stipends will be paid in the amount of $150 for one course, $300 for two courses and $600 for three courses. Each course shall be a minimum of three credit hours. The program is to be funded by an existing $1 million in federal funds, covering a total of 2700 credit hours.

"The $1 million of federal funds will only help 4 teachers per county. This stipen is a play on words and money. Once again, we hear big talk about helping public schools and its teachers but with inadequate funding. If you under fund great programs, you can then turn around and say how the public schools have failed to use the tools available to them. In reality the ultimate goal is for public schools to fail and thus continue to create the venue that will eventually eliminate public schools," says Mauricio Rosas, spokesperson for Voice of Freedom.

Bush also offers, creation of weeklong summer institute for principals of schools with low performance in reading - These low performing schools are eligible to apply for Reading First funding. The summer institute, hosted by Project CENTRAL will assist principals in applying for the federal grants, and train them in how to implement a school wide research based system of instruction. "The fact that Jeb is pushing for federal funds is so, that the extremist-on-the-right can enforce zero tolerance and prohibit the teaching of diversity, and limit discussion of alternatives to birth control, other than abstinence only," says Rosas.

The program offered by Jeb is even more concerning because it will be part of a federal governments program to "review reading courses offered by public higher education institutions." Will the federal government determine which books to read? Will the federal government restrict literature that teaches diversity? How far will the not-so-little federal government go to restrict free access to information?

Voice of Freedom
2605 West Kennedy Blvd
Tampa, FL 33609