I write to express the overwhelming opposition of my members to HB 283. All of our public school students have the right to a robust, well rounded public education that prepares them for career, the workforce, higher education and full participation in the civic life of their communities. Not only do all students have this constitutional right in New Hampshire, but it is the state’s obligation to fund it. 

This bill would lower the quality of the education many of our students receive by limiting the subjects considered in the state’s funding formula to Math, English/ Language Arts, Science and History. Anything else would be extra and presumably could be provided at local expense. Many of our local school districts are already

We support HB 655 because there are hungry kids in New Hampshire. As of Sept 2024, almost 40% of Granite State children live in households that don’t have enough food, at least some of the time.

And since we know these children are in New Hampshire, we know that many of them are in our public schools. I know because I have seen them. My members see them on any given day. My members often dig into their own pockets to keep a stash of easy snacks in their classrooms for those in need. Why do we do this? Because we know that hungry kids have a harder time paying attention to their schoolwork. Hungry kids often have more off tasks behaviors and disrupt learning for other students. Hungry kids sometimes act out. What they don’t do is learn as well as they could.

I am here today to express our support for SB 206.

AFT-NH supports SB 206 because giving our educators and students distraction free learning time to focus on learning during the school day is just good common sense. 

We support this bill because the current system isn’t working. As cell phones have become a common, and constant companion for teens, preteens, and even some elementary school students, the issues this causes in our classrooms have multiplied. Cell phones have become a distraction from the learning tasks at hand, competing with the teacher for the attention of students. With ready access to social media aps, student cell phone use during the school day can increase student anxiety, add to feelings of stress, decrease in-person communication and inflame incidents of cyberbullying. 

If you live in a town of one of these School Districts, please attend the Deliberative Session! Please support AFT-NH Members who have worked hard to negotiate a contract that will appear on March 11th (Election Day) ballots. TOGETHER WE WIN!

KNOW THE IMPACT!