One of the things on HEF's radar for the upcoming legislative season is to lobby for digital devices to be added to the PEP statutes as an approved expense for the Personalized Education Program scholarship funds.
(If you aren't sure why digital devices like laptops, tablets, printers, etc., are not currently an approved use of PEP funds, please see this previous post.)
If you'd like to help in these efforts to get digital devices added to the PEP statutes, please reach out NOW to your local legislators to voice your concerns and your desire to see it added! The more the legislators hear from their constituents on this issue during these months leading up to the next legislative season, the better the chance that they will have it on their radars for the upcoming sessions. We will be lobbying on the issue regardless, but parent voices are SO important! The legislators need to know when an issue matters to their constituents.
Not sure what to say or how to contact your Representatives or Senators? See below!
SOME TIPS:
1. Make sure you're contacting YOUR legislators!
Legislators receive a lot of calls and emails. If a letter/email comes from someone who does not live in that representative's district, it may be simply discarded or deleted. Each representative advocates for the residents of their own district, so it's important to be sure you're reaching out to the right legislators.
Be sure to include your address/county of location in a visible place in the subject or intro line of your email so they know right away that you are one of their constituents.
You can easily find the name and contact info for your local Representatives and Senators using the links below.
Find Your Representatives: https://www.myfloridahouse.gov/findyourrepresentative
Find Your Senators:
https://www.flsenate.gov/Senators/Find
2. Keep it brief and organized!
The legislators and the related staff are very busy, and long, detailed accounts can be overwhelming to read.
Instead, try to:
Quickly acknowledge/thank them ("I know you're very busy. Thank you for the work you do representing your constituents" or something like that.)
Include a quick context & your main reason for writing ("I'm a parent with 3 kids on PEP, and it would be hugely impactful for our family to be able to purchase digital devices with PEP scholarship funds" or whatever applies to you but lets them know who you are.)
QUICKLY LIST your supporting points/the reasons why this matters specifically to YOUR children... no more than 1-3 short paragraphs! For this situation, it might look something like this:
My son would greatly benefit from the virtual programs and online classes that are already approved expenses for the scholarship, but the laptop/tablet needed to access them is too expensive for us to afford.
Digital materials (like downloads of printable worksheets, etc) are also a big part of our at-home lessons for all three of our PEP students, but our printer died last month, and since digital devices like printers are not an approved expense, we cannot afford to buy a new one.
OR
I want my child to be tech-savvy and know how to navigate today's digital world, but even though typing instruction programs, coding classes, etc., are available through the scholarship, we cannot afford the actual computer to use those programs.
Etc.
[THESE PARAGRAPHS SHOULD BE CUSTOMIZED FOR YOUR SPECIFIC CONCERNS AND YOUR SPECIFIC, PERSONAL REASONS FOR THOSE CONCERNS. Please do not just copy/paste the exact paragraphs from above. When legislators receive carbon-copy emails from several parents, they come across as less genuine.]
4. Thank them again (with your contact info if they want to follow-up), and exit!
You don't have to use this EXACT formula, but a basic template like this will ensure your email is clear, concise, and easy to follow.
REMINDER:
When reaching out to your Senators and Representatives, keep it brief! You want to communicate WHY this issue matters personally to you and your children, but in the BRIEFEST form possible.
This is not the best time to provide every detail... that could result in your main points not being received or understood. I recommend you save the details for if they reach back out wanting to speak with you further. That way, you can at least be sure your MAIN points are being read/heard.
And we want EVERY parent’s voice to be heard!