AFT New Mexico joins statewide bus tour promoting new vision for high-quality public education
12 stops, 9 cities, 5 days, 1,012 miles
Supporters come out to sign the bus. Coalition to deliver bus with signatures to Public Ed. Department and legislators
Albuquerque -- AFT New Mexico members joined fellow educators, parents, students and community members in below freezing temperatures at Albuquerque's Del Norte High School this morning to kick off a weeklong bus tour promoting a community-created vision for high quality public education for New Mexico.
After a series of statewide town hall sessions engaging more than 9,000 New Mexicans, Keep the Promise coalition members, which includes AFT NM, drafted a resolution containing expectations participants had identified as being critical for a successful public education system. This morning the coalition unveiled a tour bus plastered with the resolution goals and encouraged supporters to sign the bus to show support for the plan.
Throughout the week, correlating with AFT's national day of action events in more than 100 communities, the Keep the Promise coaltion will be touring the state encouraging supporters to sign the bus and an online petition. The bus tour is slated to travel 1,012 miles with a dozen stops across the state. At the final stop on Friday at the state's Public Education Department, AFT NM president Stephanie Ly will be joined by representatives from the KTP coalition to deliver the resolution signer names to the state's public education secretary-designate. The bus will also make an appearance at the 2014 legislative session in January where the coalition will ask legislators to adopt the resolution as state education policy.
The bus tour continues today with stops in Albuquerque, Belen and Socorro. Tuesday stops include Chaparral and Las Cruces in Southern New Mexico. Wednesday stops include Gallup and Grants in the Western part of the state. Thursday and Friday events include Albuquerque, Rio Rancho, Los Alamos, Taos and Santa Fe.
Future events include a statewide televised education town hall to be broadcast on New Mexico's PBS, KNME, before the legislative session in January.
Contact: Stephanie Ly (505) 463-4867