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Why Tuesday? - Post 4

Posted by Sophia Moreno in American Government - Laufenberg on Friday, December 10, 2010 at 6:51 am

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Robbie and I have decided to lobby our issue on a state level, so we need to contact our elected State officials.  We each have different district representatives, but have decided to write an e-mail together to the Governor.  Ed Rendell is the current Governor, yet it has not escaped our notice that he will shortly be replaced by Tom Corbett.  We may end up contacting them both, as well as our district representatives, just to be sure.  


In a previous post I listed my District Representatives.  There has been a recent change:- Vincent J. Hughs- Pamela A. Delissio
I realize e-mails are not a very direct way of contacting officials, especially with everything they must get.  We might also form a facebook page for people to support and “like.”  That would draw more attention from other people.  However, I think an e-mail is a good first step, especially if we send a bunch.  Here is our e-mail:

Dear [Governor Rendell,]


We are writing to discuss the current voting system on both a National and State level.  As young adults, we are new to the voting process, and concerned with voter turnout.  We believe that voter turnout is significantly tied to voting accessibility.  Analyzing the PA voting system, as well as contrasting it with that of others, we have developed a few suggestions for improvement.  Respectfully, we hope you will take them into due consideration.  

State Elections are held on the same day as National election, the first Tuesday after the first Monday of November.  Most people are not aware why voting is held on this day, but we are.  Tuesday was nationally standardized as (Vice-) Presidential election day in 1845 by law, and smaller elections followed suit.  It was designated as such for reasons that are not applicable today.  That Tuesday was meant to be convenient for citizens of the time, and chosen because it would not interfere with any religious observances and was the day before market day.  Due to the fact that it took so long to travel, most people were already in town.  

However, this method is completely outdated and no longer serves the practical function that it did in 1845.  Voter turnout is suffering.  When a system allows for more lenience, people will respond.  In the 2002 general election, Pennsylvania was ranked 40th in voter turnout, whereas Oregon ranked 6th.  Oregon utilizes mail-in voting, a much more flexible system.  

Recently, several states have either adopted or introduced voting reform.  One example in particular stood out to us.  San Francisco just passed a piece of legislation, “Proposition 1,” which would enable polls to open on the Saturday preceding. Those who found it inconvenient to vote during the day Tuesday, could instead vote on the weekend. New York City Mayor, Michael Bloomberg responded enthusiastically with his own support and own proposal. He wants to include early voting to make the system more flexible.  Pennsylvania could work in a likewise manner.  If Pennsylvania adopted a similar policy, voter turnout would improve greatly.

It would behove our State to have a voter system like this, and it would make voting for both us and the general public a much easier process.  Consider suggesting this plan, and PA will be grateful.  


Sincerely,


Sophia Moreno

&
Robert Glynn


Robbie and I are humorously wondering if we will receive an email back from a real person, or a generic “thank you concerned citizen.”  We’ll see.  Best of luck.

Tags: American Government, AMGOV, Laufenberg
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Researching the Issue - Lobbying for Smaller Schools: Educating all of Philadelphia

Posted by Taylor Tomasco in American Government - Laufenberg on Monday, November 29, 2010 at 1:42 pm

Research the Issue

1. What is the status of your issue at the legislature? Is this a "good" year?*4 elected officials, and one committee have indicated support for our issue, that has a strong background with media attention. These officials have lots of power and can influence the decisions of many people and take this lobbying assignment to the furthest extent that it can go. Our opponents would be the larger schools who have a good reputation for being a larger school, without the separation of academies, or having pupils from alternative schools attending their successful institution. So far there have been no policies 2. Who is essential to the outcome?*These are the allies that we need on board in order to allow our points to reach a higher power in the world. These are the people who can make that happen:* Robert A. Brady* Michael Nutter* Johnny Irizarry* Denise McGregor Armbrister* The Lifeworks Alternative School.We also need the School Reform Commission’s meetings to allow the public to understand our views as we will attend these meetings and express this issue to all who attend. The officials who conduct these meetings can allow the issues to reach the higher powers above.3. Who else is working on this? Can you coordinate?*Amirah Burkett and Sinnea Douglas, other seniors at SLA are also lobbying on adequate education. We don’t all have the same exact focus areas but we can use each other’s findings to make a stronger debate, on why education has become such a prevalent issue in this futuristic society we live in today. We have already planned a meeting with the two of them to make an action plan.* Small academies and schools with a good basis or primary focus are ones who play a key role in helping us lobby for smaller schools. When the focus comes to these alternative schools, after we have influenced the public, we will use the influence these small schools/academies have on the public eye, and reach out to the alternative schools. This process will enable the students being taught there to branch out to receive a better education from a more focused curriculum. These students will be given a second chance to not only turn their lives around, but make a future for themselves in the process.4. Who can you influence?* With the help of some very influential figures in the realm of education, we will be able to convey our message across a broad range of schools. Varying from the alternative, public, private, catholic, and parochial, a good education needs to be provided to all students. No matter what the reason, all students need to have access to the same tools and resources to receive an equal education. *We also believe that there needs to be a higher authority addressing these concerns as well. If this concern reaches a level to which it receives national attention, we believe it should be worthy enough to be put in-front of the President Barack Obama, and The Department of Education Head Arne Duncan.5. What is the time frame?*Although our class, American Government, will only run until the end of our second quarter (Mid January) there isn’t really a time limit to this project.  Yes, we will not be required to lobby, research and influence, but lobbying isn’t really effective unless you have desire to do it. Hopefully we will have enough success so that we can continue to lobby for it in the future, on our own time.  If not, we could always pass it down for another group of seniors to tackle in the 2011-2012 school year.

6. When are key dates - meetings, committee hearings, deadlines, etc.,

Thursday December 2, 20102010 Meeting with Amirah and Sinnea about collaborating

Thursday December 2, 2010 Meeting with Bach Tong about his experiences

Wednesday December 8, 2010 @ 2:00 PM an SCR planning meetingWednesday December 15, 2010 @ 2:00 PM an SCR action meeting
Tags: Laufenberg, AMGOV, Lobbying, Taylor Tomasco, Cody Nichols
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