Feb. 3 is the deadline to register to vote in the March 3 party primaries

Want more resources for your schools, and maybe another pay raise? Just because the Legislature gave a lot of positive attention to educators and public schools last year doesn’t mean the same thing will happen during the 2021 session, which convenes a year from now.

The only way additional school funding will push vouchers and school privatization aside again in 2021 is if educators repeat what we did in the 2018 legislative races, and that is to turn out in large numbers and vote education first, vote for legislators and legislative candidates who are truly pro-public education.

Your first opportunity will be in the March 3 party primaries. TSTA will be endorsing education friendly candidates, both Republicans and Democrats, on primary ballots, and will be releasing their names soon. So, stay tuned. But you can’t vote in the primaries if you are not registered to vote. If you already are registered, great! If not, you must do so by Feb. 3. You can find out if you are registered and how to register here.

If you have moved since the last election, it is important that you remember to register at your new address.

Also please remember that what the Legislature giveth in one session can be taken away in the next session, and this includes education funding. Whether that happens depends on what happens in the in-between year – the election year. The election year is for educators to own, but to do that you have to register in large numbers and vote for pro-public education candidates.