JOIN THE OU-IPA IN ITS CALL FOR FAIRNESS IN GREEN SCHOOL FUNDING

“The number one “kitchen table” issue for many middle-class faith families is the cost of sending their kids to a K-12 parochial school… President Obama and Democrats could materially assist these families and their schools by including them in the overall education improvement plans already on his drawing board: universal pre-kindergarten, energy efficiency grants to modernize and “green” school buildings, and publicly supported teaching materials and technology.” – Nathan Diament, OU Director of Public Affairs (The New Republic – “Works Not Words”- December 29th, 2008)

For three months the OU-IPA has been working diligently to convince Congress that non-public schools deserve ‘green’ funding – money to create jobs, reduces costs, and revitalize schools plagued by inefficient and costly infrastructure. Congress has long called it a tragedy that children are educated in improper facilities and President Obama has highlighted ‘green’ infrastructure funding as an area of primary importance for his administration. Last week, however, the House of Representatives introduced an economic stimulus package with $14 billion in public school projects but excluded Jewish day schools and other non-public schools from eligibility. WE NEED YOUR HELP.

The OU-IPA has consulted with Jewish day school leaders from around the country and reached out to dozens of Members of Congress, we now need your voice to drive the point home. Next week the House of Representatives will be holding a vote on this important legislation, we need you to call Congress and tell them to: “INCLUDE ALL OF AMERICA’S SCHOOLS IN THE ECONOMIC STIMULUS PACKAGE.”

To be most effective, please do one of the following:

1) Call your Member of Congress from the list below and thank them for meeting with the Orthodox Union and that as a constituent you are concerned with the unfair treatment of non-public schools. Call (202) 225-3121 and ask for your Congressman.

2) If you do not see your Congressman below, please call (202) 225-3121 and ask to speak to Speaker Nancy Pelosi, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, or House Minority Leader John Boehner. Convey your support for Congressional leadership that includes fair treatment of non-public schools in the economic stimulus package.

3) Do Both!

IS YOUR MEMBER ON THIS LIST?

Rep. Van Hollen – D – MD
Rep. Waxman – D – CA
Rep. Boswell – D – IA
Rep. Levin – D – MI
Rep. Sarbanes – D – MD
Rep. Barrow – D – GA
Rep. Davis – D – CA
Rep. Doyle – D – PA
Rep. Cummings – D MD
Rep. Carson – D – IN
Rep. Holden – D – PA
Rep. Hinchey – D – NY
Rep. Clay – D – MO
Rep. DeGette – D – CO
Rep. Matsui– D – CA
Rep. Cohen – D – TN
Rep. Moore – D – KS
Rep. Shadegg – R – AZ
Rep. Sensenbrenner – R – WI
Rep. Campbell – R – CA
Rep. Culberson – R – TX
Rep. Akin – R – MO
Rep. Gerlach – R – PA
Rep. Dent – R – PA
Rep. Klein – D – FL
Rep. Eshoo – D – CA
Rep. Patrick Kennedy – D – RI
Rep. Adler – D – NJ
Rep. Fudge – D – OH
Rep. Brown – R – SC
Rep. Crenshaw – R – FL
Rep. Crowley – D – NY
Rep. Lowey – D – NY
Rep. Garrett – R – NJ
Rep. Tonko – D – NY
Rep. McCarthy – D – NY

If every yeshiva and day school parent calls, there will be tens of thousands of calls, so if you reach a voicemail message, please do not hang up! Stay on the line and leave a message after the tone. It is very important, because Congressional offices track exactly how many people call on each issue and every single call makes a difference.

Once again the number to call the U.S. Congress is (202) 225-3121. Please! We need your help to achieve equal treatment of non-public schools. Call now: (202) 225-3121

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