On February 10, Senator Curt Bramble (R-Provo), Chairman of the Education Committee, introduced the Equal Recognition of School Parent Groups bill (S.B. 199). This bill would make it illegal for schools to work with parent groups that charge dues.
S.B. 199 is disguised as legislation supporting equal recognition for all school parent groups--but such protections already exist! This bill would eliminate Utah PTA and, with it, many resources which benefit Utah students, such as the Reflections Program and oversight of the School Trust Lands. Utah PTA has a long history of promoting the involvement of all of Utah's parents in schools, and S.B. 199 would bring that legacy to an immediate end. PTA truly supports equal access for all parents, regardless of which group they join--which begs the question of what is gained by excluding parent groups that require the payment of dues?
Unfortunately, Senator Bramble would not meet with Utah PTA prior to the introduction of the bill and, although PTA gave strong testimony against S.B. 199, it passed out of the education committee. This bill is now heading to the Senate floor for a full Senate vote.
It is not certain what prompted this bill, but there was controversy in Utah when the national PTA magazine accepted an ad from PFLAG (Parents, Families, and Friends of Lesbians and Gays) offering scholarships to youth. This happened at least two years ago, but perhaps some people have long memories.
If you live in Utah, contact your state senator TODAY, and tell them to vote NO on S.B. 199. Contact informatin can be found here.
I work for PTA but I am posting this as a private citizen who believes that no matter what promoted the bill, it is discriminatory.
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I'm not from Utah and do not have kids in school, but this piqued my curiosity so I did a quick google search to learn both sides of the story. One result: http://www.sltrib.com/news/ci_11723210
It seems the bill does 2 things: 1) Forces schools to work with any parent group that wants to work in the school, and 2) Prohibits these parent groups from charging dues (Actually they are allowed to "charge" dues so long as they grant a waiver if someone doesn't want to pay).
A bit of background I just learned from the articals: PTA (Parent Teacher Association) is a national group that has local chapters. Dues from the loval groups go to the national organization, which I assume does things like lobbying.
Because some people don't want to affiliate with the national organization or have other reasons, they form local Parent Teacher Organizations. Part 1 of the bill (from my description above) would ensure that these groups get the same access to schools as the PTA groups do. I think that's probably a good thing.
I also think Part 2 is a good thing -- parents who can't afford or do not choose to spend their money to pay dues should also have access and input to the groups that can affect their children's education. It shouldn't be "pay to play." I don't see the bill as discriminatory at all.
The big problem is that Utah PTA currently charges dues. According ot the article, they would need special clearance from the national organization to waive dues, and it's unclear if that can happen and how long it will take. So in effect, this bill could keep PTA out of schools. Utah PTA also says it does offer scholarships to parents who can't afford the dues.
In my opinion, the bill should be written in a way that allows the scholarships to count as dues waivers. The the PTA can stay in the schools where it does now, but all parents will have an equal voice.
Why do girls have to be portrayed as airheads who fawn over cutesy puppies, kittens and now, mini burgers from Burger King. As I have researched, apparently this isn't the first sexist incindent with Burger King commercials. See "I am Man" commerical on You Tube. I just don't get it. Things really need to change in this world, and to me, this is not helping and is not innocent entertainment. Russ Klein who is the VP of Marketing at Burger King really needs to take into consideration that we no longer live in the dark ages. You would think that for the million plus bedroom furniture he got paid this past year, he would have a clue about not being sexist.