Are The Elected Officials Aware Of The Wide Range Of Important Education Issues?
Public education is one of the most important institutions in our country, an institution in which the public has always played a role. It is the public who elects school board members, pays taxes to support public schools, votes for school bond referendum, and visits and volunteers in the schools. Public schools, in turn, transmit important values and information that help young people participate in our democracy and become responsible citizens. Clearly, education is important to all members of society given its impact on the community, the economy, jobs, safety, and health.- The skill level of the population increases national productivity and leads to higher salaries.- The better educated a person, the more likely that person is to report being in excellent or very good health.- The more education a person has, the more likely that person is to be registered to vote and to actually vote.- There is a strong relationship between the drop-out rate and crime among many young malesMany candidates are vocal about their support for public education, but voters can do a lot to ensure that elected officials are aware of the wide range of important education issues, and that they honor their commitment to education. This voter guide is designed to help voters focus on important education issues and ask political candidates and office holders informed questions.Strong Public Education Candidates:- Know about school reform and ways to improve public schools- Know education policy; the federal, state, and local laws that govern public education; and the responsibilities of the desired office- Make education a high priority in their political platform- Solicit opinions and viewpoints from citizens through polling, town meetings, community conversations, and face-to-face discussions- Have prior experience with public education policy- Have a clear message about public education priorities- Have a realistic funding plan to support public education improvements and ensure adequate resources for all schools- Communicate who will be held accountable for student and school performanceQuestions for CandidatesA quality public education requires the assurance of basic physical needs: shelter, nutrition, physical safety, sleep, and exercise. Quality education begins at an early age with the development of cognitive and social skills. A candidate who supports education will have a clear position on a wide range of health and other children’s issues.- What proposals, if any, do you offer for public programs to support underserved children?- What is your position on the value and importance of education?- What are your top priorities for improving public education?How well students achieve is only partly determined by students themselves. Schools play an important role, and elected officials at every level have some say in how schools are run and who is held responsible for student achievement. Strong education candidates understand the role their offices play in public education, and should be able to articulate what they will do to improve school quality.- Who do you think should be responsible for ensuring that public schools operate effectively and children achieve?- If elected, what responsibility and authority would you have for public education?- What do you believe are the best ways to evaluate school and student performance?- How would you evaluate teacher quality?Most candidates for office support quality and improvement in public education, but their proposals for how to pay for public education vary widely. A strong education candidate should have developed a viable plan for school funding.- What are your views on how much is spent on public education and whether this amount is adequate?- What changes, if any, would you make to the existing education funding structure?- What is your position on current pending court cases that would affect funding for education in the state?- What programs and areas do you consider most vital and deserving of the highest protection from budget cuts?- How would you fund the program and policy changes you are proposing?- Do you have any tax proposals to offer for public school funding?- Do you support generating funds for public education through taxes on liquor, tobacco, lotteries, casino gambling, slot machines, or through any other “sin” taxes or revenues?- What is your position on bilingual education?- Do you believe the amount spent for students classified as “special needs” is adequate? What changes would you make, if any, to support these students?- What is your stance on school choice?- What is your stance on the adequacy of school facilities?About This GuideThis guide presents a list of questions that highlight the most pressing concerns and issues in education today. Public education is a leading issue in American politics. The information in this guide will inform voters about important education issues, and help voters determine a candidate’s stance on public education. There are many possible answers to the questions raised in this guide. No single answer is “correct”. The questions help identify the education decisions candidates will have to make if elected, and encourage voters to make ballot selections based on which candidates they believe have the strongest public education agenda. In the upcoming 2020 national election, voters will elect a president, vice president, 435 members of the US House of Representatives, and 35 US senators. In state elections, voters will elect governors, state house and senate members, and countless mayors, regents, city council members, boards of supervisors, county officials, and school board trustees.Who Should Use This Guide?Everyone! A free, public education is one of America’s most vital assets. Every member of society has an investment in a quality public school system. Good schools lead to strong economies, better jobs, less crime, and many other positive social outcomes. Education is an important responsibility for elected officials at all levels, and thus an important area to consider in every election. From the President of the United States to local school board members, making decisions about education is a critical part of the job. We hope this guide helps you make informed decisions about which candidates to support.
Tips for You When It Comes to Criminal Law
Everyone should have some knowledge when it comes to the law, and most especially criminal law. Some people think that because they are law abiding citizens, then there is no longer any need for them to bother knowing anything about how the law works. They couldn’t be more wrong.If you take on that kind of attitude then how would you turn out, if you or one of your loved ones were accused of a crime? That can be a very traumatizing experience, but you have to be able to handle it or it could be worse. In order for you to handle it, you need to have knowledge of criminal law.How Knowledge of Criminal Law HelpsYou don’t have to be a legal expert, but some knowledge of criminal law can help ensure that you will not have your rights trampled. The most important thing is for you to know what your rights are and what you are required to do under the law. There are certain things that law enforcers cannot compel you to do even if you are already suspected of a crime.Criminal Law TipsThe following are some tips that you should keep in mind concerning criminal law. You would find this helpful when you or your loved one is accused of doing a criminal act.· A policeman cannot search you, your car, and your house if you do not give them permission to do so and if they don’t have a warrant to do it. You can refuse to let them search until you get a lawyer. That is within your rights.· When you get arrested by the police, you are not obligated by the law to talk to them. You can refuse to say anything because that might be used against you when you have to face trial. You can decide to wait until you have an attorney to help you out.· If you have been convicted for some criminal act in the past then that might be taken against you. This would especially be the case when your previous conviction is for something related to your current case. That would be seen by the court as a sign that you might not be willing to change your ways and so you can be a risk to society.· Each crime would have a mandatory sentence that would be the minimum for it. This means that when you plead guilty to an accusation, you might have to face time jail time depending on the case. Be sure that you know what that mandatory sentence is.· There are cases where criminal records can be completely removed from your files. This would be through the process of expungement.· If you have been accused of conspiring with others to perform a criminal act, then you will get the same sentence as all the other members would be getting.These are just some of the useful things that you should know when it comes to criminal law today. Hopefully you would never have to use this knowledge.
Hiring a Social Media Manager: 21 Questions to Ask
The Social Media Manager is becoming the go-to person for businesses who require assistance with their online marketing efforts. It’s no secret the impact social marketing can have on a business and the advantages its brings. And it’s also no secret that most business owners cannot handle their social marketing all on their own.A Social Media Manager does a whole lot more than just posting status updates on profiles. Social media management encompasses figuring out the who, the what, the when and why. Who does your business want to reach? What is needed to reach them? Where are they most active? Why should we use social media as part of our marketing efforts? Many businesses are finding that outsourcing or hiring someone to manage their campaigns is becoming an important part of using social media for marketing. An outside individual can usually see the bigger picture more clearly.Social media management is a position that has attracted a huge amount of attention and membership in recent years. I see the main reasons for its popularity as:- Low entry barriers- A high demand for the services- Big rewardsBut is it really for everyone? Honestly, there are now a lot of social media managers. Some very, very good. Some really, really bad. So how do you filter out the bad ones and find the good ones? Well, the good social media managers will know their stuff and they understand what it takes to be successful.Here are 21 questions you can ask your potential social media manager and what the better answers should look like…1. How do you define success?The amount of followers isn’t the only sign of success in social marketing. A social media manager should be able to help you define success on a strategic and tactical level, in order to support your larger marketing goals. If a social media manager has a limited view of success, or is unable to explain performance measurement beyond the volume of audiences, they won’t be able to provide you with higher level strategic solutions.2. What sort of results can we expect?A good social media manager will manage your expectations and let you know what results you could achieve. Remember that social media managers are not psychics. They should act on your behalf using the best practices of the industry, but there is a lot that is out of their control. They should be able to give you a rough idea of what they bring to the table based on their previous results and experiences. If a social media manager cannot communicate this effectively to you, then they probably don’t have the level of experience you need.3. How is ROI defined in social marketing?Contrary to popular thinking, ROI can always be measured in social marketing. But it can be perceptual. What are your goals? Were they achieved? If so, then you had a positive ROI. Did your campaigns help your business in any way or have any positive effects? If they did, then you were successful. Social marketing ROI is not always tied to tangible business benefits. Ask the social media manager which factors can be measured and how they will be reported to demonstrate the value they bring to your business.4. What social platforms do you specialise in? Why would these particular platforms be right for our business?Different social networks have different audiences and practices. Not every network is right for every business or industry. For example, how could a pharmaceutical company possibly engage in drug marketing on Twitter? The reality is that most businesses can take advantage of the networks out there in some way, but if there are limitations, you want your social media manager to be aware of them.5. Should we be on every social platform?A social media manager who has done their research on your business should know your target audience. How this is answered is the key because it provides you with an instant understanding of their perceptions of your business. If a social media manager extends your business visibility to many networks, then your marketing efforts may spread too thin and mean some of the campaigns might suffer. They should pick where your target audience is already situated and focus on maximising performance on those platforms.6. Would Google+ be worth using for our business?This should highlight the extent of your potential social media managers Google+ knowledge. Google indexes Google+ content faster than content posted anywhere else. It’s a platform that has grown rapidly since its launch in 2011 and is now one of the main social platforms. A social media manager should know this and should understand whether your target audience is present there, thus viable for your business, and how Google+ can be leveraged to fulfill your wider marketing objectives.7. Could you give us an example of a limitation on a social platform that you have experienced? How did you overcome this?A social media manager should know that social networks come with limitations; API calls, bandwidth limitations, character limits etc… If a social manager has never run into limitations and hasn’t experienced how to overcome them, then this likely means that they are not very experienced. In fact, they will probably be completely new to the social landscape. Asking how they overcome any hurdles with their past or current clients will give you a good indication of how they respond to adversity.8. Can we run a “Like and Share to Win” style contest on our Facebook page?If a social media manager does not know the answer to this, then move on. Its imperative you find someone who knows the rules and guidelines of each and every social platform and who will not have your business in violation of any Terms of Service. As a heads up, on Facebook you have to use a third-party app to host the contest and cannot use the ‘Share’ button, ‘Like’ button or require a comment in order to be entered to win.9. Have you ever had to handle a social marketing crisis? If so, could you provide an example?Asking a social media manager to define what that ‘crisis’ means to them can highlight their level of experience. If their biggest crisis consists of miss-typing a URL on a Pinterest pin and not noticing until their client asks why there’s so many messages about broken links, then chances are they are vastly inexperienced. It’s also insightful to ask what steps they took to resolve the crisis and how the situation was handled.10. Could you show us some of the clients or projects you are currently working with?Any reputable social media manager will show you their client accounts. And be proud to do so. Some profiles will probably be doing better than others depending on each campaigns goals and strategies. If they dodge the question or cannot show you anything, then it should rightfully lead you to think they are hiding something. Social media managers who take pride in doing quality work should want to show you their portfolio. Imagine turning up to a sales pitch without a product sample. Clients would never even think about placing an order unless they can see what they are buying.11. How would you allocate our social marketing advertising budget?A social media manager should be able to describe a plan for how best to allocate your advertising budget and how they would know if it’s successful. Specific metrics and KPIs should be given, analysed and reported. The choice of advertising platform will also allow you to gauge their perception of where they think your business should be promoted, in what format and to what audiences.12. What will our responsibilities be as a client?A social media manager doesn’t operate in a vacuum. They will need to be in the loop with your other marketing activities. You’ll also need to provide any necessary resources and wider marketing information or materials. A social media manager should have clear guidelines for their role, and yours as a client. This should typically be communicated to you prior to establishing a working relationship.13. What are our competitors doing in social marketing?Any social media manager who values your work opportunity will do initial research before sitting down with you. If they doesn’t know what your competitors are doing, it should raise alarm bells. A social media manager should be able to give you insight into the way your competitors are using the major social networks like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube right from the offset. This can always be researched fully later, but will give you an idea into their proactiveness and organisation.14. How do you evaluate new social platforms? How do you stay on top of the latest updates and innovations in Social Marketing?The social landscape is always changing. Even the most experienced social media managers need to refine their skills, update their strategies and practice new techniques. A social media manager should have experience with building engagement and showing results across multiple platforms and with several different tools. There are some platforms considered to be the juggernauts right now, but remember the days of AOL, MySpace and eBay? Would you hire a social media manager who pitched engaging your I.T customers on MySpace? I doubt it. The point is that the social landscape is dynamic and a social media manager should be constantly evaluating new platforms and making recommendations to you on whether they are suitable for you to explore.15. Do you offer community management in your Social Marketing services?Social engagement doesn’t end when you publish your Facebook page. In fact, creating profiles is often the ‘easiest’ part of the process. The execution of the community management strategies that follows is the more difficult (and more expensive) element. It is important to know how your social media manager approaches community management and what strategies and tactics they will use to interact with your audiences. If you don’t know this, then you will have no clue on how they will manage your brand online. You should have guidance and offer feedback into how your business is positioned and wants to be perceived online.16. Do you have your own blog? Do you currently write content for various Social platforms?Social media managers should practice what they preach. You can ask to see their blog in action and see if they are posting regularly. Being a social media manager is about so much more than updating Facebook and Twitter. Content should be balanced, otherwise your social streams will either be giant advertisements or lists of interesting articles that they came across. A good social media manager will be able to write effectively, allowing you to have a constant stream of interesting and engaging articles. They will also be SEO savvy and content will be optimised to have the right keywords in the right place, ultimately linking back to your business. You can ask to see what articles they have already written so you can determine whether or not their style of writing would fit your business.17. What blogs or social sites do you regularly read?Social marketing is always evolving and effectively marketing on social platforms can be a bit like trying to hit a moving target. Google+, for example, had become a commonly used tool for 40% of marketers within only a year of launch. That is a huge gain in such a small space of time. This is just how social marketing works. New blogs and social sites come and go within the blink of an eye. A good social media manager should stay on top of these changes, which means a lot of reading. They should be able to list multiple reputable social sites and explain why it is they follow them.18. What is your understanding of Edgerank?Social media managers that know their trade will be able to explain about Edgerank to you. Edgerank is basically what runs Facebook posts. Without knowledge of this, they will have little insights into how to properly optimise Facebook campaigns. Edgerank determines who sees what, when they see it and how often it’s seen. It also provides a good picture into their technical knowledge and understanding of social marketing.19. What do you think is the most important thing a Social Media Manager should be doing?A solid answer you should look for would be something along the lines of ‘monitoring’ and/or ‘listening’ to your audiences within your social domains. It’s quite an ambiguous question, but the answers will provide insight into their general thinking about managing your social campaigns. The key word many fail to incorporate is social. If answers are not somewhat geared towards a social dynamic, then they have missed the point completely.20. Could you tell us a story?These type of answers are commonly used in interview processes to see how someone reacts to a random question. In this instance, it’s actually a well-thought out question for two reasons. Firstly, if a social media manager has the ability to tell a compelling story, that will give you a huge advantage in all levels of your social marketing activities. Secondly, it puts them under pressure and you are able to gauge how they handle something unexpected.21. Why should we hire you?I honestly don’t like this question but I think it is fair to ask a social media manager this directly before hiring in order to see how they can sell themselves. This could have strong implications if your campaigns are tuned towards sales and lead generation. A social media manager should demonstrate how valuable they can be to you and what makes them different or valuable in your situation.There are definitely more questions that could be asked. Some will no doubt be specific to your business or industry. Hopefully, asking questions like these will help you determine the right social media manager for your business.What questions would you add to this list?One final thought though… I don’t think this is a position that should be taken lightly, or seen as an entry-level position. A social media manager will speak the lifeblood of your business to an indefinite amount of customers. The skills needed to fulfill the diverse tasks of varying social marketing campaigns means both expertise and experience is crucial. Would you trust an unproven CEO to run your business in a new direction? Would you trust an unskilled social media manager to guide your brand online?