Wednesday, May 2, 2018

Red For Ed Part One



March and April have been two extreme months of highs and lows.  I'm glad the month is over, but not without great cost. 



During these past 2 weeks, Arizona teachers have walked out in the thousands to speak up for students, teachers, support staff and school funding. These are difficult times for many people.  With 150,000 teachers walking out of the classroom, most schools have shut down across the state.  It is a historical moment. 


Some districts fully supported their teachers while other districts pretended to wear the red shirt. But when push came to shove, they were forced into making decisions they were not ready to make. Some districts even threatened their teachers! And yes, I joined the thousands of teachers, students, and parents and walked to the capital.  And during that time, I also did our yearly fund raising campaign for Tucson Audubon's Birdathon AND guiding!  Yeah, it was crazy switching from one thing to another.  There are too many stories to be told and I cannot share it all in one post.  


Currently we wait for the Governor's announcement for how he will fix this educational financial crisis.  If it goes south tonight, I don't know what will happen.  I'm hoping it ends soon because I need to be in the classroom with my students!  Arizona ranks 49 in educational funding and falls way below the national average for teacher pay and student funding.  I can tell you that it has gotten worse.  It's hard to find anyone who wants to teach anymore in this state.  Most of my friends have left the profession for better paying jobs.  Who will teach our kids if we can't find qualified people?  Oh and there are many shades of red to Arizona education, but I don't want to bore you anymore than I already have.  


I will just say that this is such a challenging time.  There are nights I don't sleep.  We are all stressed out but we can't live like this anymore. Enough is enough.  


As the weekend approached, I eagerly looked forward to meeting up with Steve and Kathy to help them find some amazing birds that they can brag about back home when they finish up their vacation here.  And it was an intensely fun weekend chasing crazy birds like the Sinaloa Wren, Rufous-backed Robins and Rose-throated Becards. 



We found the Sinaloa Wren skulking in the shadows along the stream of a SECOND nest!  Apparently the male builds more than one nest to attract a female.  


We were lucky and found all three species but it took time and some hiking to get to them in the extreme Arizona heat. 


Together we found amazing birds like the Hermit Warbler above and the.....


......western subspecies of the Warbling Vireo.....


.....a cool looking Abert's Squirrel......


......gorgeous views of the Black-headed Grosbeak......


......and amazing views of the often secretive Spotted Towhee.......



.....and finally seeing the beautiful blues of the Steller's Jays who happened to be mimicking hawk calls while we were there. Then it was over. 


And we were back in the 100 degree temps fighting for public education. 


Life is always interesting.  And it has been a roller coaster for me.  We manage our finances well but these past days have put us to the test.  It's hard not to think about things.  Do I sign my contract or walk away from the job?  If I don't sign my contract, I'm done.  The angry side says walk away, but the rational part of me says stay and fight the good fight.  


Our birdathon was only a few days away and just thinking about it sapped the energy out of me.  


We are all fighting for a good cause.  Change is not overnight.  Whatever the verdict is, Arizona teachers, both Republicans and Democrats, united together to fight the fight.  



And while I would much rather cross sketchy bridges with awesome people searching for our amazing Arizona birds, 


...it is teaching that brought me to this place in my life.  And no matter what, I am an educator at heart whether it be in the classroom or outdoors. 


I will fight to protect the wild spaces of our planet and I will fight to protect public education because I am a teacher.  This is what I do. 


Next week, we'll finish up with part 2 of this series.  We'll find out what the Wrenegades were up to, what Governor Ducey decided and I'll share with you our discoveries.  It includes a letter, the Butcher, and Raccoon Bob.  Please keep the Arizona teachers in your thoughts, until next time.....

19 comments:

  1. It's sad teachers have to strike to get a decent wage. They are so important to our society. Wonderful bird shots! The Jay is awesome!

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    1. Thank you for your support. We are working hard to get back into that classroom. I think this morning, the Governor passed the legislation! I can't wait to go back to work tomorrow!

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  2. Love the bird shots and the Black-headed Grosbeak is a very pretty bird. H Have a good day, Diane

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  3. Hi Chris. I'm so sorry to here that education funding has got into such a dire situation in your state. I hope your efforts result in amelioration soon. Things are not good on that front here, but at least our government are now trying to do something about it.

    Don't lose heart - - - Richard

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    1. I will say this. This so called US President and his cronies have stirred up a lot of emotion in this country. I've never seen the American people so strong. It is something I've been waiting for for a long time! There is a silver lining in everything, it's draining, but we stood strong. What an amazing experience! I hope public education across the board gets fixed because there's nothing more important that educating our future generations. I see the changes with the kids and it gives me hopes. They are different from us, but I like how they deal with things.

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    2. PS. Thanks for your support!:)

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  4. I so hope you win your fight for public education and Arizona teachers will remain in my thoughts.

    Pleased to see you were able to get out and do some birding. Beautiful photos of some wonderful species and i do love the ears on that squirrel :)

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    1. It looks like this morning the Governor signed the bill!!! SO it's back to work tomorrow. And a regular schedule again:)Thank you so much for the support!

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  5. First the birds! How cool that the black-headed grosbeak also came here to be photographed in my tomato pot on the back deck! We also share the Steller's Jay (which was fun that we both posted pictures of one next to each other on Stewart's meme!) Loved your Aber's Squirrel too. As always, your bird photos are wonderful! About AZ education...I understand how you all feel, and that it's a system that needs to be fixed. This had to be an emotional time right now. Hope things get worked out to everyone's benefit!

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    1. It's emotional and it's raw. After almost 2 weeks out, which has felt like an eternity with little sleep, we're back in the classroom tomorrow! I can't wait to go back and work with my kiddos. I missed the little buggers.

      And I saw that you also had shared the Steller's Jay photo as well. That gave me a good laugh. They are pretty birds though, aren't they! Thank you for your support! Chris

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  6. Dear Chris, what an intensely moving and inspiring post. From all the way across the world I wish you and the Arizona teachers and students all the best in your struggles. It's tough at times being an activist and caring while governments have dumb priorities and don't seem to be able to plan for the future. I love the pic of the Spotted Towhee and what looks like a golden pebble in its mouth???

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    1. I think I've walked over 50 miles this week with all the protesting, fundraising, and guiding I've done.....and I haven't lost a pound! What's up with that? I always wondered what I'd do when push came to shove. Being an activist, in theory, is always noble but when you are an activist, it's quite the experience. It's tough, but I'm glad I stuck to my guns to see this through. It was scary and an educational time for me as well. However, with this written, I don't ever want to go through that again:)

      That Spotted Towhee was eating some corn on the ground. I couldn't believe the bird was out in the open. Normally they are skulky! Thanks for your support and words! It means the world! Chris:)

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  7. Chris, your posts are always educational and enlightening. I hope all works out well for you, other teacher and, of course, the students.

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    1. Thank you! It has been crazy. I've just completed my two week stint. And it has all been a jumble. Everything should be ok, but we have a lot more work to do. The Governor has created a red army for November because the people in the legislature did not want to listen to us. They will have to now.

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  8. Thank you for being out there with AZ teachers. You should be the best instead of so far down the list. Hang in there. Hugs.

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    1. Thanks Gaelyn. It's amazing how the state utilizes both our areas. They want to keep taking money from the National Parks and education. But in education, there really isn't anything to take anymore. So that's when we fight. The first half of our agenda is done, and we have a lot more work to do before the November elections.

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  9. I'm late coming to the post, and I think I read in today's paper that the strike was settled satisfactorily ... (I hope I read that correctly). Thanks for doing your part ... even though we are retired educators from a different state, we still care ... and it all matters to everyone.

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    1. It "kinda" settled, but the battle is not over. We have a lot more to do. The legislation here was terrible and that left a mark on many of the teachers here in AZ. So now we are working on part 2 of our plan to change that:) Thank you for supporting us!

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