|
'08 Walk for Life * PICTURES FROM 2006 MARCH FOR LIFE * Pregnancy Centers          About Us Volunteer Donate Home |
How to testify before the State Board of Education (SBOE)The most powerful way to advocate for abstinence is to testify at the September 8th hearing on the proposed health textbooks. The hearings are the primary venue for the news media to witness the levels of grassroots and expert support for healthy abstinence education. At the July hearing, abstinence opponents outnumbered supporters by a margin of 10 to 1. The September hearing, however, is likely the last hearing before the Board votes in early November, and as such is the most important. Final date for public testimony:
Registering to testify: To register to testify, go to the Texas Education Agency (TEA) web site to view the sign-up form in .pdf or .rtf formats. http://www.tea.state.tx.us/sboe/input/The form includes your name, address, phone number, affiliation (indicate "self" unless testifying for your organization), and viewpoint (FOR if you agree that the textbooks are right to stress abstinence only). Email or fax the form to Pat Pinkston at pat.pinkston@tea.state.tx.us at the Texas Education Agency. Reading a Textbook:Each witness at the public hearings will have three minutes to testify. SBOE members regularly ask witnesses if they have read a textbook, so be prepared! Please read the sections on sexuality education in a high school (9-10 grade) textbook. The four health textbooks up for adoption at the high school level are:
You can check out a textbook at any of the TEA Regional Service Centers. To find the Regional Service Center nearest you, please go to the TEA web site at http://www.tea.state.tx.us/ESC/. For your convenience, however, Texans for Life will make available the relevant chapters of the four textbooks on CD ROM. Call the TLC office at 972.790.9044 to order your copy. Please contact us if you plan to testify, or to request a copy of the CD we have prepared. Logistics:The public hearing will take place in Room 1-104 of the William B. Travis Building, which is located just north of the Capitol at 1701 North Congress Avenue in Austin. There is ample public parking for a $5 fee across the street at the Bob Bullock Texas History Museum. The 15 members of the State Board of Education sit facing each other in a large boardroom with a podium off to the side for public testimony. The public is allowed to view the hearing and come and go as they please in this room. There will be a list of those signed up for public testimony available at the door. A TEA staff member will call each name to testify over a speaker in the room. The Board observes a strict 3-minute time limit, so be succinct. Please prepare a written copy of your statement, and bring 25 copies. When you go to the podium to testify, a TEA staffer will take your copies and distribute them to the Board and to the press table. Speak clearly into the microphone. A warning bell will ring two minutes into your testimony. Keep talking until the 3-minute bell rings, complete your thought and thank the Board. The Board may ask follow up questions. Press Conference:There will be a press conference before the hearing starts (around 8:30 a.m.), and all .Abstinence Only. or .Abstinence-Until-Marriage. supporters and witnesses are encouraged to attend and stand with us before the media. Look for a room at the William B. Travis building reserved for this purpose. Written Testimony:If you cannot attend the public hearing but would still like to participate, please read a high school textbook and submit written comments to the State Board of Education. You can email your written testimony to Pat Pinkston pat.pinkston@tea.state.tx.us. Questions:Feel free to contact the staff at Texans for Life Coalition if you have additional questions. Call 972.790.9044 or email Kyleen Wright at kwright@texlife.org. · Attend the textbook hearing in Austin · Wednesday, September 8th at 9:00am Room 1-104 · William B. Travis Bldg. 1701 Congress Ave. · Austin, TX · [ Map ] Kyleen Wright President Texans for Life Coalition Phone: 972.790.9044 - Cell: 214.213.4296 - Fax: 972.313.1676 - kwright@texlife.org
Be a TLC Lifeguard
Before You Leave...
|