Outdoor School funding update
Hannah E Borgerson
I am passing along an email I received from Dan at Friends of Outdoor School last night about the unfortunate proposed cut to outdoor school funding. I know many of us have already received this info, but I thought it useful to pass it along to any other Environmental Education partners in our area to help call our representatives on the impacts the proposed cut would have. Please read Dan's email for more info and thank you all for being a wonderful community of educators who support important learning experiences like outdoor school and environmental learning
Hello everyone,
This weekend we received devastating news that the Legislative Fiscal Office has recommended a drastic cut to Outdoor School funding. The cut amounts to about $12 million, a reduction of 20% to what is needed to continue full Outdoor School programming across Oregon.
It’s not too late. Please reach out right away to the full Joint Committee on Ways and Means and your own Senator and Representative to urge them to restore full Outdoor School funding. Key points to mention:
Honor the intent of the voters, who overwhelmingly passed Ballot Measure 99 in 2016.
This year Outdoor School saw record participation across Oregon, exceeding pre-pandemic levels.
Outdoor School is lottery funded. While the lottery revenue is down a small amount (0.4%), the forecast does not warrant the proposed 20% cut to Outdoor School.
Include your own personal or professional perspective on the importance of full Outdoor School funding.
Also, please encourage the school district leadership with which you work to reach out directly to the Legislature. Their voices are important and powerful.
Below are links you can use to email, write, or call all of the members of Ways and Means. Thank you for your support for Outdoor School, and don’t hesitate to reach out to us if you have any questions.
Yours,
Dan
Dan Prince
Associate Director
Joint Committee on Ways and Means