In a strong show of public support for greater school budget transparency and accountability, the Committee joined with the Coalition for DC Public Schools and Communities and 21 other public education advocacy organizations in DC to request public school budget briefings by the Office of the State Superintendent of Education prior to the April 24 budget oversight hearing before the DC Council.Hanseul Kang, State Superintendent of Education
The Office of the State Superintendent of Education
1050 1st Street NE
Washington, DC 20002

Superintendent Kang,

In anticipation of the Mayor’s proposed FY 2019 budget release on March 21st, we, the undersigned organizations, request that the Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE) schedule a public budget briefing to help residents understand the OSSE budget and prepare for the April 24th budget oversight hearing before the Council. We believe that a discussion on the FY 2019 budget, similar to the one held by OSSE last year on April 20th, would be a great way to allow your staff to describe any funding or staffing changes across programs while allowing DC residents and advocates to ask follow-up questions.

Given this year’s budget hearing timeline, scheduling one or two briefings for the week of April 9th or the week of April 16th would offer information that might be useful to those intending to testify at the OSSE public budget hearing on April 24th. We also recommend holding at least one briefing in the evening for parents to be able to attend.

We strongly believe that agency budget briefings can significantly improve DC budget transparency and accountability. They also can serve as an opportunity to help address any questions or misconceptions that may emerge with the release of the Mayor’s budget so that your staff is not inundated with questions prior to, or during, the budget oversight hearing.

Thank you for your consideration of this request.

Submitted by:

21st Century School Fund
Advocates for Justice & Education
C4DC, Coalition for DC Public Schools & Communities
Children’s Law Center
DC Action for Children
DC Alliance of Youth Advocates
DC Alliance for Restorative Practices
DC Appleseed
DC Fiscal Policy Institute
Democrats for Education Reform
Education Town Hall – We Act Radio
FOCUS
PAVE, Parents Amplifying Voices in Education
S.H.A.P.P.E., Senior High Alliance of Parents, Principals and Educators
Teaching for Change
Ward 1 Education Collaborative
Ward 3 Wilson Feeder Education Network
Ward 4 Education Alliance
CHPSPO, Capitol Hill Public School Parents Organization
Ward 7 Education Council
Ward 8 Education Council
Washington Lawyers Committee
Washington Teachers Union