How to Conduct Successful Hill Meetings

1. How to Conduct Successful Hill Meetings August 28, 2019 Webinar: https://zoom.us/j/769031859 Phone Audio: 669-900-6833 Meeting ID: 769 031 859

2. NASSP Advocacy Staff Zach Scott Senior Advocacy Manager Greg Waples Senior Advocacy Manager Amanda Karhuse Director of Advocacy

3. Capitol Hill Day—Tuesday, October 2

4. Agenda Scheduling Your Meetings Hill Meeting Myths How to Maximize Your Influence Additional Advocacy Resources

5. Scheduling Your Meetings • Add all of your Hill meeting times into the shared Google Spreadsheet: bit.ly/2019POY • Email Greg Waples waplesg@nassp.org with any questions or concerns.

6. Scheduling Your Meetings Link to spreadsheet: bit.ly/2019POY

7. Scheduling Your Meetings • Assume that your meeting will last at least 30 minutes. • You should also estimate at least 15 minutes of travel time between each meeting, especially if you are going from the House side to the Senate side or vice versa.

8. Scheduling Your Meetings • Senate side • Office Buildings • Russell • Dirksen • Hart visitthecapitol.gov/plan-visit/us-capitol-map • House side • Office Buildings • Rayburn • Longworth • Cannon

9. Hill Meeting Myths • Myth #1: • Practitioners’ voices like mine don’t really matter in crafting federal policy. • Myth #2: • Meeting with a staff member is not nearly as important as meeting with my legislator.

10. How To Maximize Your Influence

11. Before Your Meetings • Do some “homework”: • Review NASSP materials on the Policy & Advocacy Center webpage: www.nassp.org/advocacy • Prepare examples, personal stories, and data/statistics. • Find background information on the legislators or staffers. • Prioritize your top three issues.

12. Before Your Meetings • Additional “homework”: • Find a piece of legislation, a resolution, or something that the legislator has worked on in Committee that relates to the issue you are discussing: • Based on your boss’ passion for ______, I thought this issue would be of particular interest to you.

13. Before Your Meetings • Practice your “pitch”: • Draft talking points for each issue. • Don’t assume the staffer knows the issue well. • Prepare your “ask” (e.g. cosponsoring a bill, supporting funding for a particular program).

14. Before Your Meetings • Keep in mind that on some days, staffers take between five and 10 meetings, so think about how to be memorable. • Make sure you are familiar with everything in the NASSP policy folder, as some staffers like to discuss all of the issues with you.

15. During Your Meetings • Arrive a few minutes before your scheduled appointment time. • Introduce yourself to the staff at the front desk and tell them with whom you are meeting. • Give your business card to the staff member with whom you meet.

16. During Your Meetings • Make a connection with the staff member. (Do they have a family member who attended your school, college, etc.?) • Thank them for the meeting, and then go into your first pitch and appeal. • Think about the meeting as a starting place for a lasting relationship with the staff.

17. During Your Meetings • Try to think of specific examples of how the issue you are discussing impacts your life as a school leader (unable to fund specific programs because of budget shortfalls, understaffed, etc.). • Be prepared to answer difficult questions on the issues you are discussing; some staffers may ask very technical questions. • If you don’t know an answer to a question, tell them that you will look into it and get back to them.

18. During Your Meetings • Monitor your time and adjust accordingly to cover all of your issues. • Leave the folder of materials with the staff member. • Thank them for their time and ask if they would like any follow-up information. • Ask to take a picture with the staffer with whom you met.

19. After Your Meetings • Immediately after: • Post photos and information about your meeting on Twitter and Facebook using the #POY19 and #ThankAPrincipalhashtags. • As soon as possible (within a few days): • Send a thank-you email to staff that reiterates • your key points and “asks.” • Offer to be a resource and tell them to contact you whenever needed. • Invite the staffer and the member of Congress to visit your school!

20. After Your Meetings • In the next few days: • Share your experience and photos with your local media (press release) and school community. • Reach out to the district or state office and invite the member of Congress or staff to visit your school. • Complete the NASSP Hill Day Meeting Report.

21. Advocacy Resources • Policy & Advocacy Center • nassp.org/advocacy • POY Materials • nassp.org/poy-materials • School of Thought Blog • blog.nassp.org • Twitter • @NASSP, @akarhuse, @zachscott33, @gwaples, #POY19#ThankAPrincipal • Congress • www.house.gov • www.senate.gov • www.congress.gov

22. Advocacy Resources • Stay up to date on public education policy and issues impacting school leaders! • Sign up for the Policy & Advocacy Center email list: bit.ly/NASSPsignup

23. Contact Information • Amanda Karhuse • Director • of Advocacy • karhusea@nassp.org • 703-860-7241 • Greg Waples • Senior Advocacy Manager • waplesg@nassp.org • 703-860-7236 • Zach Scott • Senior Advocacy Manager • scottz@nassp.org • 703-860-7292

24. Thank You! DISCUSSION Comments and Questions

25. Federal Education Policy and Funding

26. Current Federal Landscape Key Policy Issues for POY Hill Day Q&A Agenda

27. Key Policy Issues • Federal Education Policy • Higher Education Act • School Safety and Climate • School Infrastructure • Youth Tobacco Use • Budget and Appropriations

28. One of Senate Education Committee Chairman Alexander’s main priorities in the 116th Congress is to reauthorize the Higher Education Act (HEA). Higher education—particularly the cost of college—was a major campaign issue for presidential and congressional candidates. Chairman Bobby Scott is open to a full reauthorization. However, many policies will be difficult for parties to agree on: Title IX Loan forgiveness Higher Education Act

29. Talking Points: Higher Ed • NASSP has urged members to include a variety of policies in HEA that benefit principals, teachers, and students, including: • Promoting the use of high-quality principal residency programs • Policies aimed at eliminating teacher and principal shortages • Lowering the cost of student aid programs • Loan forgiveness programs for educators • Adopting high standards for teacher and principal preparation programs that ensure educators are prepared for life in the school

30. Talking Points: Higher Ed • NASSP also urges you to ask your members to support Sen. Tim Kaine’s (D-VA) Preparing and Retaining Education Professionals (PREP) Act. This bill addresses teacher and principal shortages by: • Increasing access to teacher and school leader residency programs • Expanding the definition of “high-need” districts under ESSA to include those experiencing educator shortages in rural communities • Encouraging school districts to create partnerships with local community colleges and universities to address shortages

31. School Climate & Safety • The Trump administration’s Federal Safety Commission released its report in December 2018. • The Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Commission released its report in January 2019. • Both of these reports included recommendations to arm educators, harden schools, and impose dangerous guidelines for dealing with students suffering from mental health issues or disabilities.

32. Talking Points: School Climate & Safety • NASSP urges Congress to support preventative measures that support student well-being and school safety. Arming educators and over-hardening our nation’s schools are counterproductive measures. • NASSP supports the Mental Health Services for Students Act, the Safe Schools Improvement Act, and the Trauma-Informed Schools Act. These bills: • Aid schools in implementing comprehensive antibullying policies • Provide federal funding for additional mental health supports in schools • Recognize best practices for the delivery of mental health care in schools • Direct attention to the Framework for Safe and Successful Schools for additional school safety policy solutions.

33. School Infrastructure • President Trump supported the idea of a large, national infrastructure package during his campaign. • New chairman of the House Education and Labor Committee, Bobby Scott (D-VA), has stated that school infrastructure is a key priority for the committee this congress.

34. Talking Points: School Infrastructure • NASSP supports Chairman Scott’s Rebuild America’s Schools Act. This bill: • Creates a $70 billion grant program and $30 billion tax credit bond program for high-poverty schools • Develops a national database on the condition of public school facilities • Expands access to high-speed broadband for public schools

35. Youth Tobacco Use • NASSP is uncompromising in its commitment to the intellectual growth, academic achievement, character and leadership development, and physical well-being of youth. The negative health implications of tobacco and nicotine use are irrefutable, and the increase of electronic cigarette use poses a threat to the health of our nation’s youth. • Educators and lawmakers have a responsibility to promote policies that curb youth tobacco use and properly educate young individuals on the dangers of tobacco use.

36. Talking Points: Youth Tobacco Use • NASSP supports legislation that aims to protect youth and limit their access and exposure to tobacco products, including: • SAFE Kids Act—This bill would place restrictions on the sale of flavored tobacco, the most popular product with young individuals • Smoke Free Schools Act —This would ban electronic cigarette use in educational and childcare facilities. • NASSP also supports the Tobacco Free Youth Act, which would raise the nationwide minimum age to purchase all tobacco products, including electronic cigarettes and other vaping devices, from 18 to 21.

37. Federal Budget and Appropriations

38. Key Terms • Authorization Creates a specific program through federal law. An authorization bill acts as a prerequisite for an appropriation or other kinds of budget authority. • Appropriations Provides the actual amount of federal dollars to a specific program. Congress needs to pass appropriations bills each year for the operations and programs run by the federal government.

39. Federal Budget and Appropriations • FY 2020 Appropriations • The FY 2019 budget was finished late this year on February 15. This has affected the FY 2020 appropriations process. • President Trump’s FY 2020 budget request has not been completed, but will most likely include drastic cuts for the Department of Education. • These cuts could negatively impact many programs important to principals, similar to his FY 2019 budget. • Over the summer, Congress reached a budget deal that would increase nondefense discretionary spending by around $24.5 billion. The amount that the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies bill will receive is still unknown.

40. Talking Points: Appropriations • Ask for full authorized-level funding for ESSA programs: • Title I Grants to LEAs: $15.86 billion in FY 2019 • Title II, Part A (State Grants): $2.055 billion in FY 2019; authorized level—$2.295 • School Leader Recruitment and Support Program: $0 in FY 2019; authorized level—$15 million • Literacy Education for All, Results for the Nation (LEARN): $190 million in FY 2019; authorized level—$200 million • School Support and Academic Enrichment Grants (Title IV, Part A): $1.17 billion in FY 2019; authorized level—$1.65 billion • IDEA State Grants: $12.36 billion in FY 2019

41. Advocacy Resources • Twitter • @NASSP, @akarhuse, @zachscott33, @gwaples • Congress • www.house.gov • www.senate.gov • www.congress.gov • Policy & Advocacy Center:nassp.org/advocacy • POY Materials • nassp.org/poy-materials • School of Thought Blog:blog.nassp.org

42. Contact Information Greg Waples Senior Advocacy Manager waplesg@nassp.org 703-860-7236 Zach Scott Senior Advocacy Manager scottz@nassp.org 703-860-7292 Amanda Karhuse Director of Advocacy karhusea@nassp.org 703-860-7241

43. Thank You! DISCUSSION Comments and Questions