October 2020 Newsletter

We were about to go to “press” with our October newsletter but pushed the pause button because President Trump was at Walter Reed Medical Center. In what is no doubt a very important moment in our history, let’s pray for the health of our President, the First Lady, and everyone who is affected by Covid-19. 

2020 has been just surreal. Just when it doesn’t seem it can be anymore shocking, 2020 does not disappoint. Two moments made me catch my breath this week. The first one was on Wednesday when I called our first VRW general meeting to order since February. In one moment, I felt the weight of the last eight months and how much our world has changed. The second moment was watching President Trump, newly diagnosed with Covid-19, walk to the helicopter and go to the hospital. 

So many of us are raw, worn out, and just dumbfounded by 2020.  At the same time, we are strong. We are resilient. We are hopeful. We are proud Americans who love our country. No matter what 2020 throws our way, folks this is it for the 2020 election. Early voting starts October 13, and we’re not going to leave anything on the field. As soon as the polls open, GO VOTE. Get your spouse to the polls. Get your voting aged children and other family members to the polls. Get your neighbors to the polls. The differences between the Republican party and the Democrat party are stark.

As always, kindly remind your friends in the middle of these simple truths:

A vote for Republicans is a vote for freedom; 
it is a vote for personal responsibility;
it is a vote for the rule of law;
it is a vote for freedom of speech;
it is a vote for free enterprise;
it is a vote for freedom of religion;
it is a vote for reduced federal regulation;
it is a vote for limited taxes;
it is a vote for energy independence; and,
it is a vote for national security.
There is a choice.

Be thankful for our great country, Texas, Houston, and for all those who serve us—all the way from President Trump to our first responders and police, teachers, medical professionals, and, of course, our grocery store workers. Thoughts and prayers for our President and First Lady. Vote the entire ballot, and get everyone you know to do the same. Victory Requires Women.

• Harris County GOP organization meeting 8/18/2020
• GOTV (Get Out the Vote) rally on Aug. 18
• Mary Nan Huffman event hosted by VRW Aug. 
• Work done for Centennial for Women
• Work at Westside Republican office and grand opening 9/26
• Work for a campaign such as phone calls, post cards, distribution of campaign material, block walking, sharing on social media
• Zoom forums count!
• Time spent registering voters
• Campaign sign preparation, distribution and removal
• Any work done on behalf of VRW – prep for newsletter, work done at VRW luncheon etc.

• Election Day – November 3, 7am-7pm. 
• Early voting – October 13 - October 30  (Find voting locations HERE.)
• Deadline for receipt of Mail-in-Ballot request form by County Clerk – October 23
• Deadline for receipt of Mail-in Ballot:
  • Using residential mail via United States Postal Service, ballots must be postmarked by 7:00 p.m. on Election Day and must be received by 5:00 p.m. on November 4 (the day after Election Day)
  • Using a contract carrier (FEDEX or UPS), ballots must be received by 7:00 p.m. on Election Day. If the carrier provides receipt mark indicating a time before 7:00 p.m. on Election Day, it may be received by 5:00 p.m. on November 4 (the day after Election Day)

• If you are already registered, check your registration HERE or HERE
• If you've moved or changed your name recently, update your information HERE
• The Harris County Clerk's Office has mail-in ballot instructions, applications, an interactive map to locate your nearest polling place, and a sample ballot generator HERE

It is hard to believe I have only three months remaining as your State Board of Education (SBOE) representative from District 6. A lot of significant challenges have been met and positive results have happened in these past eight years in public education as the SBOE has worked alongside with our legislative and executive branches and the Commissioner of Education. 

Accomplishments will be discussed later, but first I will bring you up to speed on the critical race for the State Board of Education on your November ballot. Will Hickman is the Republican District 6 candidate and his qualifications, governance philosophy, conservative principles and student-focus are crucial for our children’s future. Will’s opponent could not be any more opposite in views or philosophical approach. Will Hickman for State Board of Education District 6 is a must-vote! To understand why, read further.

The SBOE’s main responsibilities are the approval of required curriculum standards for TX public school subjects and courses, “textbooks” that contain the curriculum standards, graduation requirements, money to distribute from the Permanent School Fund (typically $1-1.2 billion/year) to support every classroom, graduation requirements, educator certification rules, and public charter schools.

Critical upcoming topics and issues for K-12th grade requiring approval by the SBOE:

• New textbooks for health curriculum standards – final approval for the health and PE curriculum standards is in November 2020. Health standards have not been revised in over 20 years. There is national interest (and influence) in what TX does in approving curriculum standards and textbooks. There are many topics particularly in sex education of concern to parents, educators, and activists. To stay tuned and/or testify on health curriculum standards to the SBOE during the week of November 17th meeting: SBOE main page
• The SBOE’s goal is to support a healthy and happy childhood and life and provide support for strong student decision-making. A few key topics to be covered by the new health standards:
  • Food/exercise – identifying sugar in foods/drinks, understanding portion control, balancing calories/exercise, nutritional difference between preparing raw foods and eating prepared/processed foods
  • Importance of goal setting and task completion
  • Steps in the decision-making process and practice in setting life goals
  • Understanding the role of brain development and its impact on emotions, decision-making, and logic throughout childhood and adolescence
  • Understanding the role of thoughts and emotions in behavior
  • Healthy and unhealthy relationship characteristics
  • Benefits of a healthy marriage
  • How to build a healthy self-esteem in self and others
  • Practice in respecting others’ perspectives and resolving conflicts
  • Practice in evaluating peer influence and resisting negative peer pressure
  • Practice in avoiding unsafe situations, saying “no” and using refusal skills
  • Practice in setting boundaries and clearly communicating those boundaries
  • Understanding the role that alcohol plays in unsafe situations, assault and abuse
  • Importance of abstinence from sexual activity until marriage and identifying avenues of support from parents, trusted adults and peers to be abstinent
  • Providing medical information on birth control and disease prevention
• New curriculum standards and textbooks for science courses
• New curriculum standards and textbooks for math
• New curriculum standards and textbooks for social studies – US History, World History, US Government, Economics, etc.

As promised, a few accomplishments during my time on the SBOE:

• Revised the SBOE process to require publishers to provide a public portal to invite broad input during the review period before textbook adoption, vital to error-free classroom content.
• Revised the SBOE process so that multiple iterative drafts of curriculum standards are available online to review and evaluate during the revision process. Greater numbers of educators, higher education experts, subject experts, and parents across the state now help shape the essential knowledge expectations used to teach our children. This is crucial to achieving better standards, more buy-in and greater effectiveness in the classroom.
• Approved new Long Range Plan for Public Education – Plan through 2030 focuses on four key areas providing vision and goals to improve student outcomes: Student Engagement and Empowerment; Educator Preparation, Recruitment, and Retention; Equity and Access to Funding, Courses and Technology; and Family Engagement and Empowerment
• Added course flexibility for high school students for possible career interests – House Bill 5, passed in 2013, significantly changed the pathways to high school graduation. Instead of a one-size-fits-all 4x4 requirement (four years of English, math, science and social studies) suitable for college-bound students, students now have a variety of Career and Technical Education (CTE) classes they can pursue while in high school. The SBOE updated our significant catalog of high school course options in 2015 to support students.
• Created and hosted 4 Learning Roundtables – 1000+ in attendance and free to the public — topics included "Educating the Digital Generation," "Educating the Children of Poverty," “Recruiting, Preparing and Retaining Top Teachers,” and “Building a Stronger Texas-Acting on the Long-Range Plan for Public Education” — to discuss critical issues in Texas education, bringing together national and state experts and practitioners to inform and support policymakers, educators and education leadership. In this important service work, we partnered with the Texas Association of School Administrators.
• Added High Quality Personal Finance Courses – SBOE approved two courses for students to understand and manage their personal finances that contain critical content about real life, Financial Mathematics (1 credit in math) and Personal Financial Literacy (½ credit in social studies).
• Required all school districts to offer one or more computer science courses – Data analysis is our current and future reality in all sectors of business and society. Giving students, regardless of their career pathway, an opportunity to understand how to gather and analyze data is a 21st century skill necessary for all students.   

Village Republican Women’s Club is my home club. It has been an honor and privilege to serve the children and families of our community and state in such a vital and important role. Many of you have prayed for and supported me these last eight years. I thank you from the bottom of my heart.

God bless you and may God bless Texas education!

Village Republican Women is REPUBLICAN PROUD to contribute to the following 2020 candidates for office:

NON-FEDERAL CANDIDATES ON MOST OF VRW MEMBERS’ 2020 GENERAL ELECTION BALLOTS:

• Railroad Commissioner Jim Wright
• Supreme Court Chief Justice Nathan L. Hecht
• Supreme Court Place 6 Jane Bland
• Supreme Court Place 7 Jeffrey S. Boyd
• Supreme Court Place 8 Brett Busby
• Court of Criminal Appeals Place 3 Bert Richardson
• Court of Criminal Appeals Place 4 Kevin Yeary
• Court of Criminal Appeals Place 9 David Newell
• State Board of Education, Place 6 Will Hickman
• TX HD-133 Jim Murphy 
• TX HD-134 Sarah Davis 
• TX HD-138 Lacey Hull
• Chief Justice, 14th Court of Appeals Tracy Elizabeth Christopher 
• Justice, 1st Court of Appeals District, Place 3 Russell Lloyd
• Justice, 1st Court of Appeals District, Place 5 Terry Adams 
• Justice, 14th Court of Appeals District, Place 7 Ken Wise
• District Judge 61st Erin Elizabeth Lunceford
• District Judge 80th Sharon Hemphill
• District Judge 127th Nile Copeland
• District Judge 129th Will Archer
• District Judge 133rd Sheri Y. Dean
• District Judge 164th Michael Landrum 
• District Judge 165th Bruce Bain
• District Judge 215th Fred Shuchart
• District Judge 334th Dan Lemkuil
• District Judge 339th Jesse McClure
• District Judge 351st Arlene Hecht
• District Judge 507th Alyssa Lemkuil
• District Attorney Mary Nan Huffman
• Civil Court at Law No. 4 Clyde Leuchtag
• Criminal Court No. 12 Linda Garcia
• Criminal Court No. 16 Bill Harmon
• County Attorney John Hunter Nation
• Sherriff Joe Danna
• Tax Assessor-Collector Chris Daniel
• County Clerk Stan Stanart
• Harris County School Trustee At-Large Position 5  Bob Wolfe
• Harris County School Trustee At-Large Position 5 Don Sumners
• County Commissioner Precinct 3 Tom Ramsey
• Justice of the Peace Precinct 5, Place 1  Russ Ridgeway
• Constable 5 Ted Heap 

Check out the 2020 yard sign of the year!!  All the cool kids have one in their yards!  Email VRW Campaign Activities Chair Anne Trousdale at annet9119@gmail.com or stop by Westside Republican HQ for this yard sign and those of our Republican candidates.  #Team Republican

President Deanna Harrington called the meeting to order at 11:30 AM at the Houston Racquet Club and welcomed everyone. Penny Remick gave the invocation.  President Harrington then ask Membership Chair Karen Houck and all new members to come forward and lead us in both pledges to the flags.

President Harrington introduced the guests, candidates, and elected officials in attendance. The minutes were approved as distributed.

In the absence of Treasurer Nancy Scott, Mrs. Harrington announced that copies of the Treasurer’s Report are available from Mrs. Scott and any questions should be directed to her.

Carolyn Hodges gave the Campaign Distribution Report and announced the committee members and the duties of the committee.  The bylaws do not include any information regarding pandemics, unparalleled times or not being allowed to meet for six months. With that in mind, the Board of Directors had decided on the amount for this expense would be $10,000 when the budget was approved.  The Board decided that $5,000 would be allocated for candidates and $5,000 would be used for Republican branding.  President Harrington conferred with Mrs. Hodges and Theresa Kosmoski, TFRW and NFRW Parliamentarian regarding a solution for this dilemma. It was decided that the Board of Directors (voting members only) would act as this committee. The discussion and voting occurred September 26-27 by email. Two options were presented and voting members approved the second option giving $5000 to the named candidates. Mrs. Hodges, acting as Parliamentarian for the Village Board of Directors, moved that our club approve the actions of the Board of Directors in providing $5000 to the specified candidates and $5000 for Republican branding. No second was needed.  The club approved the Campaign Distribution Report unanimously.

Julie Jahne, Ways & Means chair, gave a wrap-up on the Centennial Celebration. It was a successful and sold-out celebration to honor the Centennial of Women’s Suffrage. The featured speaker was Lt. Colonel Allen West. There was a well-stocked shopping area included in the event, as well as a historical exhibit provided by the Sam Houston Historical Society.

President Harrington continued with several further announcements.

• VRW’s 60^th birthday is in 2021. 
• A birthday celebration on April 28, 2021, is being chaired by Carolyn Hodges.
• Anne Trousdale, Campaign Activities chair, will be sending out a weekly list of various campaign activities. There are 2 events scheduled for this evening.
• Westside Republican Headquarters is open and looking for volunteers. Contact Beverly Roberts to volunteer.

President Harrington continued with information from Legislative Chair Joanie Bain concerning straight ticket voting in Texas.

Members of the Board were re-introduced and asked to stand.

Theresa Kosmoski, Program Chair, announced that the October speaker will be Nick Adams, and the November meeting will focus on Veterans.  She asked for photos of veterans with VRW family members.

Guest speaker at the meeting was Lt. Colonel, US Army (retired) Jeffrey F. Addicott, who is a professor at St. Mary’s University School of Law.  Professor Addicott is also the Founder and Director of the Warrior Defense Project at St. Mary’s. He offers free legal advice for soldiers and won 36 cases in 2019. From 1980 to 2000 he served in the United States Army as a judge advocate. He served as a senior legal advisor to the United States Army’s Special Forces and later became the Deputy Director of the International & Operational Law Division of the Army's Judge Advocate General School. For his military service he was awarded the Legion of Merit. He retired as a Lieutenant Colonel. His latest book is entitled Trump Judges – Protecting America’s Establishment Pillars to “Make America Great Again”. There was a book signing after the meeting.

The meeting was adjourned at 1:00 PM.’