GSI SUPPORTS ALL SCHOOL BONDS & LEVIES

GSI SUPPORTS ALL SCHOOL BONDS & LEVIES

School Bonds & Levies SUPPORT SCHOOL BONDS & LEVIES EducationGrowsEconomies.com EDUCATION GR WS ECONOMIES Vote YES to suort our ublic school bonds and levies Education is at the heart of a healthy economy and it is one of the most imortant assets we have to attract businesses to our region, create new jobs, and ensure we have a strong workforce to fill those jobs. How Education Grows Economies Voting YES on bonds and levies imacts much more than students - It imacts you and the future of our economy. 65% Higher Education Required Greater Sokane Incororated suorts the Sokane region s ublic school bonds and levies. Levy Dollars Reresent About 20% of the School Districts Annual Budget These dollars suort numerous rograms* including art, music, drama, technology, textbooks and materials, STEM, student transortation, and extracurricular activities such as sorts and after school activities. These tyes of rograms are not currently considered art of basic education. * (varies by district) Education Grows Economies It s a fact that our economy is changing. Fifty years ago, you could have a family wage job with only a high school degree. Today, we re seeing new technology driven jobs in industries such as aerosace or health sciences that require a ost-secondary education. What are Bonds and Levies? Bonds are needed for infrastructure, technology and building imrovements. Levies fund the oeration of our schools and include sulies, equiment, materials, and staff. 35% Require High School Education or Less 2020 Job availability based on education By 2020, 65% of jobs will require some kind of certification or degree Source: Georgetown University Center on Education & Workforce. Recovery: Job Growth and Education Requirement through 2020, June 2013. A qualified workforce is one of the to three items comanies look for when choosing a location to move or start a business. There are 25,000 unfilled jobs in WA as a result of the job skills ga (growing to 50,000 by 2017), 80% of which are in high skill STEM and health care roles. Source: Boston Consulting Grou and Washington Roundtable Joint Reort. Great Jobs within Our Reach Solving the roblem of Washington state s growing jobs skills ga, March 2013

Take Action Now Inform and encourage your emloyees, neighbors, relatives and friends to vote in suort of their district bonds and levies. GSI can rovide you with the tools you need to hel raise your voice for education in our community. EducationGrowsEconomies.com Why are Bond and Levy Dollars Essential? Local taxes fund a significant ortion of our K-12 education system. GSI understands that a well-rounded education today is critical for our community s success. K-12 education is an essential ingredient to fueling the growth of our economy - one that will require new tyes of skills and knowledge. Working Together to Raise the Bar for our Community It s u to us all to ensure we suort a strong school system today and in the future. Local communities are the engine for our schools and our schools hel to fuel our local economy. Local taxes fund a significant ortion of our K-12 education system. We raise the bar in our homes and in our businesses. We re also asking our schools to raise the bar. To do this, we need to work together to suort high quality education for a high quality workforce. Sokane is a region that works together to make great things haen. Innovating for Success Schools across our region are using new strategies to hel students succeed and to imrove outcomes. From new teacher training rograms to more rigorous curriculum and from STEM academies to the innovative use of technologies, our schools are utting our investment in education to work for students today and for the future. EDUCATION GR WS ECONOMIES EducationGrowsEconomies.com Sokane Area School Districts with Bonds on the Ballot: Central Valley School District Cheney School District Mead School District Nine Mile Falls School District Sokane Public Schools Sokane Area School Districts with Levies on the Ballot: Central Valley School District Cheney School District Deer Park School District East Valley School District Freeman School District Liberty School District Mead School District Medical Lake School District Nine Mile Falls School District Reardan-Edwall School District Riverside School District Sokane Public Schools West Valley School District Want to Know More? For more information or details on how you can get involved, contact Alisha Benson, Vice President of Education & Workforce, GSI and Executive Director, Sokane STEM at 509-321-3608 or abenson@greatersokane.org. Connect. Drive. Advocate Greater Sokane Incororated Sokane, WA 99201 509.624.1393 greatersokane.org

Voting Laws DO As an emloyer you need to be cautious that you don t cross any lines during voting season. We want to make it easy for you to encourage emloyees to Get Out the Vote. Encourage and remind emloyees to vote. Also remind them about ucoming voting dates so that deadlines are not missed. Send out emails (see email temlate samle). This is an effective method of encouraging the entire worklace to vote. Distribute voter guides on the ucoming issues and initiatives. Set u a voter registration table or ass around voter registration information at a staff meeting. Hang osters with imortant voting dates, reminding staff to vote. DON T Don t TELL emloyees how to vote. You can inform staff on issues, but you cannot tell them how to vote on an issue.* Don t give out incentives to vote a certain way. *No emloyer may discriminate against an emloyee in the terms or conditions of emloyment for failure to suort or oose a ballot roosition For more information visit www.educationgrowseconomies.com Greater Sokane Incororated Sokane, WA 99201 509.624.1393 greatersokane.org

Get Out The Vote! A Dozen Easy Ways to With limited time and resources, here are some ways you can quickly and easily Get Out the Vote without sending a dime. Talk to eole you work with about the imortance of voting and how it imacts your organization and the community you serve. Encourage citizens to vote in an article on your website or in any business newsletter that is distributed before the voting deadline. Send emails to your staff, members, clients, board members and volunteers encouraging them to vote. Create Vote Today signage and lace it in your main lobby and other common areas with information about ballot dro box locations, and hone numbers or website voting resources. Include reminders in ayroll enveloes that get distributed before the voting deadline. Do an office knock on the day before the voting deadline - make the rounds in your business offices and remind your colleagues to VOTE. Include a VOTE FEBRUARY 10 card in grou meetings or rograms that your business holds in the month leading u to the voting deadline. Make a VOTE FEBRUARY 10 message to lace in your comany s window. Add a VOTE FEBRUARY 10 message in your email signature. Put u reminders to vote on your business reader boards. Set u a voter registration table at your office. Carool or walk with co-workers to a dro box location to send in ballots. Make it fun and social! For more information visit www.educationgrowseconomies.com Greater Sokane Incororated Sokane, WA 99201 509.624.1393 greatersokane.org

Samle Email Temlates Consider the difference you can make as an emloyer to remind eole through email to vote. SUBJECT LINE: REGISTER TO VOTE Today is the LAST day for mail or online NEW registrations and udates to vote for the February 10, 2015 ballot. Don t miss out on a chance to VOTE. WHAT WILL BE ON THE BALLOT? This secial ballot will have a number of local school districts seeking bond and levy suort from the community. WHAT ARE BONDS AND LEVIES? Bonds are needed for infrastructure. Levy dollars are used by school districts to fund rograms such as art, music, drama, athletics, school bus transortation and much more. For more information visit www.educationgrowseconomies.com. Register to vote online at www.sos.wa.gov/elections/myvote Jan 12 SUBJECT LINE: BALLOTS MAILED TODAY Kee an eye on your mailbox-the February 10, 2015 ballots were mailed today. WHAT WILL BE ON THE BALLOT? This secial ballot will have a number of local school districts seeking bond and levy suort from the community. Jan 23 WHAT ARE BONDS AND LEVIES? Bonds are needed for infrastructure. Levy dollars are used by school districts to fund rograms such as art, music, drama, athletics, school bus transortation and much more. Visit www.educationgrowseconomies.com and find out if your local school district has a bond and/or levy. Register to vote in-erson BEFORE Feb. 2. SUBJECT LINE: LESS THAN ONE WEEK AWAY February 10 is fast aroaching. Make sure you take the time to vote and make this community what you want it to be. WHAT WILL BE ON THE BALLOT? This secial ballot will have a number of local school districts seeking bond and levy suort from the community. WHAT ARE BONDS AND LEVIES? Bonds are needed for infrastructure. Levy dollars are used by school districts to fund rograms such as art, music, drama, athletics, school bus transortation and much more. For more information visit www.educationgrowseconomies.com. There is only one week left to fill out your ballots! SUBJECT LINE: VOTE TODAY Today is the deadline to mail your ballots or to dro them off at a dro-box location. Find a dro-off location near you. www.sokanecounty.org/elections Feb 3 Feb 10 For more information visit www.educationgrowseconomies.com Greater Sokane Incororated Sokane, WA 99201 509.624.1393 greatersokane.org

Remember to Vote! Remember February 10 is the last day to vote. This secial ballot will have a number of local school districts seeking bond and levy suort from the community. Bonds are needed for infrastructure. Levy dollars are used by school districts to fund rograms such as art, music, drama, athletics, school bus transortation and much more. www.educationgrowseconomies.com Remember to Vote! Remember February 10 is the last day to vote. This secial ballot will have a number of local school districts seeking bond and levy suort from the community. Bonds are needed for infrastructure. Levy dollars are used by school districts to fund rograms such as art, music, drama, athletics, school bus transortation and much more. www.educationgrowseconomies.com Remember to Vote! Remember February 10 is the last day to vote. This secial ballot will have a number of local school districts seeking bond and levy suort from the community. Bonds are needed for infrastructure. Levy dollars are used by school districts to fund rograms such as art, music, drama, athletics, school bus transortation and much more. www.educationgrowseconomies.com

GET REGISTERED VOTE BEFORE FEBRUARY 10 Get Registered. Visit htt://wei.secstate.wa.gov/sokane Create Something Greater Greater Sokane Incororated Sokane, WA 99201 509.624.1393 greatersokane.org