Hi Voornaam,

Schools across Oregon are now back in session. Parents across the state can breathe a sigh of relief that after a long, hot summer, teachers, staff, and administrators are ready to dive into a new school year, especially after two really challenging years.

If you have school-age children, we at the Democratic Party of Oregon, especially the dedicated members of our Education Caucus, hope that the beginning of the school year is going well for you and yours.

Of course, the turning of the calendar to September also means that we have only two months before the 2022 election, and this is a BIG one. We know that schools, educators, and school boards are under regular attack by right-wing extremists.

To protect our kids from these extremists, we must elect Tina Kotek as Governor and grow our majorities in the U.S. Senate and House by electing Sen. Ron Wyden, and our great Democratic Congressional team: Rep. Earl Blumenauer, Rep. Suzanne Bonamici, Val Hoyle, Jamie McLeod-Skinner, Andrea Salinas, and Joe Yetter.

It’s critical that we elect an education champion as Governor, and that’s Tina Kotek! Tina has spent her career fighting for stronger schools for our kids, and she won’t stop anytime soon. Check out what Tina has to say about her plans to strengthen our schools as governor:

“From my earliest days in the legislature working on improving school nutrition and strengthening access to school nurses, to my leadership as Speaker to achieve historic new investments in pre-K - 12th grade through the the Student Success Act, I am committed to make sure every student in Oregon has a strong, equitable pathway to educational success.”

Tina Kotek’s platform will:

• Improve Oregon’s graduation rates to 90% for all student groups by 2027.
• Reduce the time dedicated to standardized testing and focus on real-time assessments to monitor student learning.
• Restore child care capacity that was lost during the pandemic, maximize federal dollars to expand access to pre-K for Oregon families, and improve access to infant and toddler care by cutting the red tape that limits where home-based child care providers can operate.
• Increase educational achievement for rural youth and youth of color by expanding investments in community-led initiatives.
• Accelerate career and technical education program growth in economically disadvantaged areas of the state.

To support these critical priorities please join the Democratic Party of Oregon’s amazing volunteer voter-contact program which has proven over and over that it wins tough elections. People power – neighbors talking to neighbors at their front doors or over the phone – is the only way to cut through the lies that voters read on social media or see on Fox News.

Yours in the fight for our children’s future,

KC Hanson, Chair
Democratic Party of Oregon