The RED for Ed rally took place on November 19 of this year. Gibson Southern had 5 teachers that attended the rally and Gibson County School Corporation  had nine or more attend. I was able to talk to a few of the teachers that attended from the high school, Mrs. Knaebel, Ms. Lintzenich, and Mrs. Vieira.

“The rally has a lot to do with awareness and coming together to promote public education. Educators and Students have not been able to get the funds they need to keep up with the times,” said Mrs. Knaebel.

It was an opportunity for the teachers who attend to help the cause for struggling teachers who want to stick with the profession but do not get what they need to help the students as much as they can. Many teachers in the United States have had to find a new job because they do not earn enough money as teachers to support themselves and their families.

I was able to speak to Ms. Lintzenich about her experience at the rally.

“ One of the biggest reasons I went was because I wanted to fight against state testing. Just this week, Gibson Southern is doing Istep retesting which shuts down my class for 4 days in total to give the test. I believe students are tested to much at the state level,” said Ms. Lintzenich.

Funding was also a big reason the teachers went. “ Next year, two of Mrs. Vieira’s classes’ funds are going to be cut.The school will have to come up with the money to keep those classes going. If we don’t the classes won’t be quality classes because they don’t have the funding they need to be taught the right way,” said Lintzenich.

It was a big opportunity for our staff to fight for what they believe in. “ The state has put restrictions and standards for standardized testing which means they have to achieve a certain level. This doesn’t work for all students. The standardized testing is not reflecting how kids are doing in the classroom which is part of the reason I decided to attend. I am a big believer in if you believe in something you should stand up and fight for it,” said Knaebel.

“ It was an amazing thing to see 20,000 other teachers there. I met tons of new teachers that were all coming together for the same cause. I believe that many other teachers should go if they get another chance,” said Mrs. Vieira.

The red for ed rally was a great opportunity for our teachers to fight for what they believe in. The amount of people there shows that this is a great cause.