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In This Issue / Mar. 20, 2015  Whiston chosen as new State Superintendent House will now consider school bake sales bill since Senate passes it New bill would change how history is taught in schools Join CSR Lobby Day to protect public pensions and retiree health care New ad for Proposal 1 emphasizes road dangers Whiston chosen as new State Superintendent The State Board of Education has picked Brian Whiston, Dearborn Public Schools Superintendent, to replace current State Superintendent Mike Flanagan who retires at the end of June. Before becoming Dearborn's superintendent, Whiston spent 11 years as a lobbyist for Oakland Schools. He was also a school board member for Waterford Schools and taught at Wayne State University. During his interview, Whiston expressed concern that teachers are being targeted and that needs to change. "We do need to celebrate the great things our teachers are doing. We have to celebrate the career, the field of education." Whiston said his first priorities will involve proposing a plan to improve student achievement and a plan to change how schools are funded. Whiston was selected over Vicki Markavitch, Oakland Schools Superintendent, and Scott Menzel, Washtenaw Intermediate School Superintendent, for the position. House will now consider school bake sales bill since Senate passes it The Senate passed SB 139 that would allow school districts to raise money by holding bake sales three times a week in schools. Such fund raisers have been banned until now since they didn't follow federal nutritional guidelines.  States are allowed to set the number of fund raisers that don't meet federal guidelines, but the Michigan Department of Education (MDE) didn't allow any in Michigan. Supporters say bake sales held during school hours were very popular and raised money to help students in extra-curricular activities. The bill, sponsored by Sen. Patrick Colbeck (R-Canton), would give districts more local control to decide if they wanted to sponsor bake sales or not. The federal nutrition guidelines are part of a larger government effort which went into effect last summer. The guidelines require all foods sold on school campuses during the school day to meet certain nutrition standards.  The bill now moves to the House for consideration. New bill would change how history is taught in schools Three bills introduced in the Senate this week impact the history curriculum taught in schools.  SB 209, proposed by Sen. Patrick Colbeck (R-Canton), would require school districts to focus on the Constitution and Declaration of Independence, as well as state and federal constitutions. Called the "Good Citizenship: bill, the Department of Education would be responsible to make sure schools made the changes to their curriculums and be included on state testing. September 11 through September 17 would be designated "Patriot Week" in Michigan with SB 210. According to bill sponsor, Sen. Mike Kowall (R-White Lake), this would help people understand the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.  The last bill is SB 211 introduced by Sen. Mike Shirkey (R-Jackson County). The "American Heritage Bill" prevents a school board from censoring the teaching of the "founding documents" because they contain religious references.  Join CSR Lobby Day to protect public pensions and retiree health care The Coalition for a Secure Retirement (CSR) is hosting a Lobby Day onTuesday, April 14 at the Capitol from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Participants mustregister. Last month, Sen. Phil Pavlov (R-St. Clair) introduced SB 102 which moves new employees into a defined contribution pension plan.  Under Pavlov's bill, employees hired after June 30, 2015 would be automatically placed in the plan. CSR cited a study by the National Institute of Retirement Security (NIRS) showing that moving all new employees to a defined contribution plan would lead to a lessening of benefits for employees at a higher cost. The plan would also increase costs to local school districts that would be funding two plans. And while the population in MPSERS would shrink, the unfunded liability would not. CSR's first-ever Lobby Day is designed to make legislators aware of the serious consequences should SB 102 pass. Lobby Day participants will meet at the Mackinac Room in the Anderson House Office Building, 124 North Capitol Ave., Lansing for a sign-in and breakfast. From there, they will meet with legislators from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. to advocate for the protection of public pensions and retiree health care. Box lunches will be provided. Wrap-up is scheduled from 2 to 3 p.m. New ad for Proposal 1 emphasizes road dangers The Safe Roads Yes! campaign has released its third ad in support of Proposal 1. The ad continues the theme that Michigan roads are hazardous with a first-hand account of what happened when a piece of road went flying through a driver's windshield. Take a look at the ad to see the latest reason why Proposal 1 deserves a "yes" vote on May 5. Your voluntary contributions to MEA PAC and the NEA Fund help elect friends of public education! Contribute today!  Due to a variety of rules, MEA only sends political e-mails to home e-mail addresses. This e-mail has been sent to an address deemed by the MEA to be a home e-mail address. If you have received this message at a school district or work site e-mail address, or if you want to change the e-mail address where you receive Capitol Comments, reply to this message and tell us your name, your old e-mail address and your new e-mail address. Please do not forward this message to any school district or work site e-mail accounts.