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Wednesday, March 28, 2018

PA Ed Policy Roundup March 28: Florida Parkland Students Guest Editorial in The Guardian


Daily postings from the Keystone State Education Coalition now reach more than 4050 Pennsylvania education policymakers – school directors, administrators, legislators, legislative and congressional staffers, Governor's staff, current/former PA Secretaries of Education, Wolf education transition team members, superintendents, school solicitors, principals, charter school leaders, PTO/PTA officers, parent advocates, teacher leaders, business leaders, faith-based organizations, labor organizations, education professors, members of the press and a broad array of P-16 regulatory agencies, professional associations and education advocacy organizations via emails, website, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.

These daily emails are archived and searchable at http://keystonestateeducationcoalition.org
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Florida Parkland Students Guest Editorial in The Guardian



2018 PSBA Advocacy Day April 16, 2018 Harrisburg
Join PSBA and your fellow school directors for the annual Advocacy Day on Monday, April 16, 2018, at the State Capitol in Harrisburg. PSBA is partnering with Pennsylvania Association of Intermediate Units to have a stronger voice for public education. Hear how advocacy makes a difference in the legislative process and the importance of public education advocacy. This event is free for members; registration is required.
Register online here: http://www.mypls.com/Default.aspx?tabid=3753



Governor: Give kids a voice in school safety | Opinion
by Tom Wolf, For the Inquirer Updated: MARCH 27, 2018 — 2:43 PM EDT
Tom Wolf is governor of Pennsylvania.
The “March for Our Lives” brought together young people from across the country and Pennsylvania to demand safer schools and stronger gun safety laws. Their passion and activism took many forms in a historic show of solidarity, and they have inspired millions to join them in their mission. We can’t ignore their calls for sensible gun laws that adults in power have failed to enact despite wide public support. And politicians shouldn’t force top-down changes for school safety, like putting guns in classrooms, without listening to the voices of students, parents, teachers, and school officials. For these students, the images of Columbine, Parkland, Newtown, and many other school shootings represent the terrifying threat they worry about and live with each day. I hope these students continue to speak out and make their voices heard. I am listening and I join the students in urging Congress and the Pennsylvania General Assembly to take action on gun-safety legislation. In Pennsylvania, the Assembly should pass bills to keep guns from domestic abusers and ensure that everyone must have a background check before purchasing a gun. At the federal level, Congress must act to ban of weapons of war, like AR-15s.
But this moment also calls on leaders to do more to make sure schools are safe.

A new congressional map doesn't solve gerrymandering. Here's how Pa. advocates want to reform the redistricting process.
Inquirer by Liz Navratil & Jonathan Lai - Staff Writers Updated: MARCH 27, 2018 6:28 PM
HARRISBURG — When the Pennsylvania Supreme Court overturned the state’s last congressional map, it blasted away heavily gerrymandered districts and replaced them with more balanced ones for this year’s election. But larger questions about whether and how to reform the redistricting process in the long term were left to the legislature. “We haven’t succeeded in further removing what got us in trouble in the first place, which is partisan self-interest,” said David Thornburgh, head of the Committee of Seventy. The Philadelphia-based good-government group is part of a coalition advocating for fairer maps. “We may have better maps but we haven’t fixed the process.”  On Tuesday, a group of state senators and, separately, two state representatives renewed discussions about proposals to have an independent citizen commission, rather than lawmakers, set the state’s congressional and legislative district boundaries. Advocates had been pressing for change, but the conversation was on hold during legal battles over congressional districts.
http://www.philly.com/philly/news/politics/state/pennsylvania-congressional-map-redistricting-reform-gerrymandering-fair-districts-bill-20180327.html

Pennsylvania redistricting - the next fight. Reform proposals get aired in Senate committee
Penn Live By Charles Thompson cthompson@pennlive.com Updated Mar 27, 5:52 PM; Posted Mar 27, 5:52 PM
Pennsylvania has its new Congressional maps, thanks to a ferocious and politically-tinged court battle. Now, the question is, can people on the different sides of that fight come together on a better way to draw them up, and district maps for the state House and Senate, in the future? That conversation started Tuesday with the Senate State Government Committee holding a long-awaited hearing on a set of reform bills that would move the process from the legislature and governor - aka politicians - to some form of citizens commission. What is redistricting? What is Gerrymandering? Supporters of reforms argue the current process has proven too prone to partisan gerrymandering that stunts political competition and voter interest, and can contribute to policy gridlock both in Washington and Harrisburg. The clock is ticking.
http://www.pennlive.com/politics/index.ssf/2018/03/redistricting_plans_get_aired.html#incart_river_index

Arming Teachers Not a Great Idea, Says Top Republican Senator for Education
Education Week Politics K12 Blog By Andrew Ujifusa on March 27, 2018 11:50 AM
Lamar Alexander, the leading Republican on education in the U.S. Senate isn't keen on arming teachers to make schools safer.
Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., the chairman of the Senate education committee, told the Associated Press he is "not a big fan" of giving teachers firearms to protect their schools, saying that teachers already have enough to deal with. His comments put him at odds with President Donald Trump, who has said he supports trained and experienced educators carrying guns on school grounds. Other Republicans, including U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos, have also voiced support for the idea—DeVos has said arming teachers shouldn't be mandatory but should be an option where local officials deem it appropriate.  Alexander also said that it's up to states to arm teachers. He made a comparison to airplanes, noting that trained marshals, but not pilots, are armed during flights.  The fiscal 2018 appropriations bill signed by Trump last week includes the STOP School Violence Act, which will fund crisis-intervention teams, mental-health training, and anonymous reporting systems for potential threats to schools, among other programs in districts. The act doesn't put in place new gun-control measures; it also includes a ban on using money provided under the law to arm teachers or give them firearms training.
http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/campaign-k-12/2018/03/arming_teachers_not_great_idea_republican_senator_education.html

“The student journalists who work for The Eagle Eye, the student newspaper at Marjory Stoneman Douglas, offered their “manifesto” for gun regulation reform in The Guardian newspaper Friday. Don’t let the word “manifesto” scare you; these are ideas that polls show most Americans support.
— Ban semi-automatic weapons that fire high-velocity rounds. —?Ban accessories that simulate automatic weapons.
— Establish a database of gun sales and universal background checks.
— Change privacy laws to allow mental health care providers to communicate with law enforcement.
— Close gun show and secondhand sales loopholes.
— Allow the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to make recommendations for gun reform.
— Raise the firearm purchase age to 21.
— Dedicate more funds to mental health research and professionals.
— Increase funding for school security.
We find these suggestions much more sensible than the one offered Sunday by former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania on CNN: “How about kids, instead of looking to someone else to solve their problem, do something about maybe taking CPR classes or trying to deal with situations (so) that when there is a violent shooter, that you can actually respond to that?” As if CPR could save the life of a student whose flesh and organs and tissues have been ripped apart and decimated by high-velocity bullets shot from an AR-15. As if the students who marched Saturday were “looking to someone else to solve their problem.”
LNP Editorial: The students are making their case for sensible gun regulation — it's up to adults now to show similar courage
Lancaster Online Editorial by The LNP Editorial Board March 28, 2018
THE ISSUE: Hundreds of thousands gathered Saturday in Washington, D.C., and cities around the country to march in support of gun reform. The demonstrations were in response to the Feb. 14 massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. A group of teenagers from Solanco High School joined the Washington protest. In Lancaster, several thousand people made their way through the downtown. The event started with a march from Clipper Magazine Stadium that ended at Binns Park. About 30 high school and college students from Lancaster County and the region helped put the event together. The sign Solanco High School junior Jenna Beth Phillips made and waved at the massive “March for Our Lives” in Washington, D.C., read: “They tried to bury us. They didn’t know we were seeds.” That phrase has been attributed variously to a Greek poet and a Mexican proverb. It seems particularly apt when describing the #NeverAgain movement, led by the student survivors of the Feb. 14 shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida.
Some adults, particularly the hard-liners in the National Rifle Association leadership — using rhetoric the association’s members surely must abhor — have taunted and maligned the student activists.
http://lancasteronline.com/opinion/editorials/the-students-are-making-their-case-for-sensible-gun-regulation/article_a6abc03c-31d1-11e8-99a7-e382350608db.html

The student journalists who work for The Eagle Eye, the student newspaper at Marjory Stoneman Douglas, offered their “manifesto” for gun regulation reform that appeared in the US edition of The Guardian newspaper Friday:
Parkland students guest edit Guardian US
Our manifesto to fix America's gun laws
After the massacre at our high school, our lives have changed forever – so we’re proposing these changes to halt mass shootings
The Guardian US by Editorial staff of the Eagle Eye Fri 23 Mar 2018 01.00 EDT Last modified on Sat 24 Mar 2018 11.39 EDT
As a student publication, the Eagle Eye works to tell the stories of those who do not have a voice. Today, we are the ones who feel our voice must be elevated. In the wake of the tragedy that occurred at our school on 14 February at Marjory Stoneman Douglas, our lives have changed beyond what we ever imagined. We, along with our publication, have been transformed. We will remain so for the rest of our lives. We have a unique platform not only as student journalists, but also as survivors of a mass shooting. We are firsthand witnesses to the kind of devastation that gross incompetence and political inaction can produce. We cannot stand idly by as the country continues to be infected by a plague of gun violence that seeps into community after community, and does irreparable damage to the hearts and minds of the American people. That’s why the Eagle Eye has come together and proposed these following changes to gun policy. We believe federal and state governments must put these in place to ensure that mass shootings and gun violence cease to be a staple of American culture. We will be marching this Saturday, 24 March, for those that we loved and lost, and we write this in the hope that no other community or publication will ever have to do the same. The changes we propose:
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/commentisfree/2018/mar/23/parkland-students-manifesto-americas-gun-laws

“The people demand a law banning the sale of assault weapons, the people demand we prohibit the sale of high-capacity magazines, the people demand universal background checks. Stand for us or beware.”
The march of hope-mongers | Opinion
Inquirer by E.J. Dionne, For the Washington Post Updated: MARCH 27, 2018 — 8:33 AM EDT
E.J. Dionne writes about politics in a twice-weekly column for the Washington Post. 
For several hours on Saturday, cynicism was banned from the streets of what on many days seems to be the most cynical city in the world. Throngs estimated to number up to 800,000 gathered in Washington because a group of determined, organized, eloquent and extremely shrewd high school students asked them to come, and because too many Americans have been killed by guns. Suddenly, hope-mongers were stalking the nation’s capital. They believed, against so much past evidence, that the National Rifle Association could be routed. The crowd seemed to expect it would require an election to usher in the reforms they seek. “Vote them out!” was one of the day’s dominant chants. All along the march route, clipboard-wielding volunteers sought to entice the faithful to register so they could cast ballots to achieve that end. Cameron Kasky, one of the heroes of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School mobilization, drew raucous cheers when he began his speech with the words, “Welcome to the revolution.” He was not imagining the storming of the Bastille or the revolt in Petrograd. His promise was peaceable and refreshingly practical. “The voters are coming,” he declared.
http://www.philly.com/philly/opinion/commentary/march-for-our-lives-gun-control-violence-parkland-marjory-stoneman-douglas-high-school-20180327.html

Right now we're dealing with the rarest form of the gun-violence disease | Helen Ubiñas
Philly.com by Helen Ubiñas, STAFF COLUMNIST  @NotesFromHel |  ubinas@philly.com Updated: MARCH 27, 2018 — 4:30 PM EDT
Around the time that funding was drying up for her antiviolence center, Maria Kefalas began raising money to support research for the rare and incurable disease afflicting her youngest daughter. Her 8-year-old, Calliope Joy Carr, was diagnosed in 2012 with metachromatic leukodystrophy, a form of a degenerative neurological disease so uncommon that by one estimate it strikes one in 40,000 to 160,000 children. Kefalas was struck by people’s generosity. But as a longtime antiviolence advocate, she also couldn’t help but recall all the hours spent trying to get people to care about the gun violence affecting thousands of children in Philadelphia, all but begging them to put their efforts and money where their flashes of empathy were. Last year, more than two dozen of Philadelphia’s 77,000 young men between the ages of 13 and 19 were murdered. That’s about 30 times the mortality rate of the leukodystrophy that Kefalas’ daughter is battling. But people didn’t open their wallets to wage war on violence. The St. Joseph’s University professor of sociology and criminal justice and director of the now-defunct antiviolence Richard Johnson Center was characteristically blunt: Her fund-raising techniques hadn’t changed — she was using the same lessons learned raising money for antiviolence efforts as she was on her cupcake fund-raisers for her daughter’s disease. “It was the issue,” she concluded. “People just didn’t care.” At least not in the way they’ve started to after the Parkland, Fla., school shooting.
http://www.philly.com/philly/columnists/helen_ubinas/right-now-were-dealing-with-the-rarest-form-of-the-gun-violence-disease-helen-ubinas-20180327.html

'I am not fearful of punishment,' writes suspended Boyertown student, 'I am fearful of being silenced'
Digital Notebook Blog by Evan Brandt Thursday, March 22, 2018
Blogger's Note: The following is an essay written by Boyertown Area High School student Abigail Slater. She was required to write an essay about "what she did wrong" while she served her one-day in-school in-school suspension for walking out of school on March 14 as part of the National Walk Out Day. If you would like to submit a guest post to this blog, send it to ebrandt@pottsmerc.com
On March 14th, 2018, I, Abigail Slater, walked out of the building in protest of gun violence and security in schools. This was an act of civil disobedience and I am proud to say I was part of this movement. I feel ashamed to be part of a school that punishes students for protesting, but it helped me in the long run. After receiving my suspension, I interviewed with the newspaper. Not only was I able to get more attention to the cause, but since I received a punishment it got people’s attention. The actions taken by the school against the students’ protest has sent a wave of anger and tension throughout the student body. I am optimistic that this will spark a movement towards change. 
http://evan-brandt.blogspot.com/2018/03/i-am-not-fearful-of-punishment-writes.html

"We're inventing new ways, it seems, to drive people out of the teaching profession in Kansas"
Kansas considers making schools liable for not arming staff
Inquirer by MITCHELL WILLETTS, The Associated Press Updated: MARCH 27, 2018  6:20 PM
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) - Kansas schools that refuse to allow teachers to carry guns could be held legally responsible in the event of a tragedy under a proposal drafted after last month's mass shooting at a Florida high school. Opponents of the measure, which got its first hearing Tuesday in front of the House Insurance Committee, expressed concern it could effectively mandate arming teachers rather than allowing it, as several states have done. "It would certainly open the door for that conversation," said Democratic Rep. Brett Parker, an Overland Park school teacher. "The further we go down this rabbit hole, the more chance there is for even more obnoxious legislation moving forward." Even if that provision is stripped, as some advocates suggested during the hearing, the bill would prohibit insurers from denying coverage to a school because it lets its teachers or staff members carry weapons.
http://www.philly.com/philly/news/nation_world/20180327_ap_885daa19f4394aa99e64fd7ba582d79b.html

Doctors assure Rick Santorum that learning CPR won’t save mass-shooting victims
Post-Gazette by MEAGAN FLYNN The Washington Post MAR 28, 2018 4:15 AM
Doctors and surgeons had an important message for former Republican senator Rick Santorum on Sunday: CPR does not save people who are bleeding to death from AR-15 wounds. The comments directed at Santorum came after he suggested live on CNN that learning CPR was a better way for young people to take action in response to a mass shooting, rather than protesting gun violence and asking “someone else to solve their problem” by passing a “phony gun law.” The panel on CNN’s State of the Union show was discussing the March for our Lives, which drew upward of 800,000 people to the Mall Saturday to demand gun-control legislation. Many of the marchers - including the teenage organizers from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, where Nikolas Cruz fatally shot 17 people last month - were students. Santorum argued that they should try to learn how to respond to a mass shooter as an individual rather than demanding large-scale change from lawmakers. “How about kids, instead of looking to someone else to solve their problem, do something about maybe taking CPR classes or trying to deal with situations where there is a violent shooter and you can actually respond to that?” Santorum said
http://www.post-gazette.com/news/nation/2018/03/28/Doctors-assure-Rick-Santorum-that-learning-CPR-won-t-save-mass-shooting-victims/stories/201803260170?utm_term=Autofeed&utm_campaign=Echobox&utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Twitter#link_time=1522225735

Bethlehem Area School District facing $5 million deficit
Jacqueline Palochko Contact Reporter Of The Morning Call March 27, 2018
The Bethlehem Area School District has been able to slash its deficit in half. When budget talks for 2018-19 began, the district was facing a $10.7 million hole. At a budget workshop Monday night, administrators said that deficit has since been cut by $5 million, mostly through borrowing $3 million from the fund balance. Charter school tuition remains a big cost for the district. Bethlehem Area is expected to pay $29.2 million to charter schools. The district’s Act 1 Index is 3 percent. If taxes are hiked 3 percent, that will bring in $4.9 million.
http://www.mcall.com/news/education/mc-nws-bethlehem-area-school-budget-20180327-story.html

Dover Area eyes tax increase amid new high school project
York Dispatch by Junior Gonzalez, 717-505-5439/@EducationYD Published 7:51 a.m. ET March 27, 2018 | Updated 8:18 a.m. ET March 27, 2018
Dover Area residents may be seeing their school property taxes rise, if ever so slightly, for the first time in three years. In an early budget presentation by district business manager Jennifer Benko Thursday, March 22, estimated financials show a $2.4 million budget gap for the 2018-19 fiscal year, though nearly all of it is tentatively proposed to be paid with money saved up by the district. During the presentation, several administrators updated the board on certain goals, including reducing class size, staffing changes and other budgetary considerations related to the upcoming groundbreaking for a new $65 million building project at the high school and intermediate school set to begin in July.
https://www.yorkdispatch.com/story/news/education/2018/03/27/dover-area-eyes-tax-increase-amid-new-high-school-project/460186002/

Chester High basketball players crack code for success, on and off the court
Inquirer by Kathy Boccella, Staff Writer  @Kathy_Boccella |  kboccella@phillynews.com Updated: MARCH 27, 2018 — 11:56 AM EDT
On the basketball court, Chester High School has clearly cracked the code for success – with a record eight state championships for a boys varsity squad that’s produced NBA stars such as Jameer Nelson and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson. Now, school leaders want hoopsters from the boys’ and girls’ squads at the Delaware County high school to bring their winning attitude from the hardwood to a keyboard by launching a one-of-a-kind coding club to teach them high-tech skills – to expand their career options and convince their peers that developing software is cool. “There’s a million jobs for this – not everyone is going to college,” said Michael Smith, a junior point guard and co-captain of the Clippers. “They can get an early start (on coding) and it gives you a lot of opportunities.” While working on his tablet for an hour before basketball practice three days a week, Michael was hoping to create his own app. Players who can make both game-winning baskets and smartphone apps is the dream of Chester-Upland School District superintendent Juan Baughn, who came up with the idea to work with Apple to start a high school coding club to teach basketball players the basics of writing computer software code.
http://www.philly.com/philly/education/chester-high-school-basketball-players-coding-class-20180327.html

Philly District plans call for phase-out of Strawberry Mansion as a neighborhood high school
No freshman class is slated to start in September. The building might be used for other educational programs.
The notebook by Darryl Murphy and Dale Mezzacappa March 27, 2018 — 6:00pm
Determining that Strawberry Mansion High School is no longer sustainable, the School District is planning to gradually shut it down and use its sprawling building to house various alternative education programs. Under the plan, no 9th graders will be accepted for September 2018, and the last class will graduate in 2021. Eighth graders in Strawberry Mansion's catchment will be assigned to other schools in North Philadelphia. For next year, boundaries would be redrawn to absorb its catchment area into other high schools. Nearby high schools include Simon Gratz, a Mastery charter; Vaux Big Picture, which reopened this year as an innovative project-based school, and Benjamin Franklin. There will be a community meeting at the school at 6 p.m. Wednesday to discuss the plans. Mansion, as it is known, is the alma mater of Council President Darrell Clarke and rapper Meek Mill, but it stands at just 17 percent of its enrollment capacity today. Only 25 percent of the students in its catchment area are enrolled there. The rest go to charters and special admissions schools, as well as other neighborhood schools.
http://thenotebook.org/articles/2018/03/27/strawberry-mansion-high-school-slated-for-closure

The third installment of Philadelphia School Board Nominee Reports: APPS Researches 18 New Board Nominees
Alliance for Philadelphia Public Schools by Lisa Haver and Deborah Grill March 2018
At a March 16 public meeting, the Education Nominating Panel approved eighteen additional nominees for the new school board to replace the SRC on July 1. Mayor Kenney will consider these, along with the initial twenty-seven approved two weeks ago, to come up with a nine-person board. He is expected to announce his final selection by April 5.
https://appsphilly.net/the-third-installment-of-philadelphia-school-board-nominee-reports-apps-researches-18-new-board-nominees/


2018 PSBA Advocacy Day April 16, 2018 Harrisburg
Join PSBA and your fellow school directors for the annual Advocacy Day on Monday, April 16, 2018, at the State Capitol in Harrisburg. PSBA is partnering with Pennsylvania Association of Intermediate Units to have a stronger voice for public education. Hear how advocacy makes a difference in the legislative process and the importance of public education advocacy. Government Affairs will take a deeper dive into the legislative priorities and will provide tips on how to be an effective public education advocate. There will be dedicated time for you and your fellow advocates to hit the halls to meet with your legislators on public education. This is your chance to share the importance of policy supporting public education and make your voice heard on the Hill. This event is free for members; registration is required.
Register online here: http://www.mypls.com/Default.aspx?tabid=3753
https://www.psba.org/event/2018-psba-advocacy-day/

NPE: Join us in a Day of Action April 20th to Stop Gun Violence in our Schools
Network for Public Education February 16, 2018 by Darcie Cimarusti
After the slaughter of students and staff in Parkland, Florida, the time for action has never been more urgent. The politicians sit on their hands as our children and their teachers are murdered in their schools. We will be silent no more! The failure to enact rational laws that bar access to guns designed for mass shootings is inexcusable. It is past time to speak out and act. Pledge your support to stop gun violence here. We call for mass action on April 20, the anniversary of the horrific shootings at Columbine High School. We urge teachers, families, students, administrators and every member of the community to engage in acts of protest in and around their schools. Create actions that work best in your community.  Organize sit-ins, teach-ins, walkouts, marches–whatever you decide will show your school and community’s determination to keep our students safe. One elementary teacher suggested that teachers and parents link arms around the school to show their determination to protect children.
https://networkforpubliceducation.org/2018/02/join-us-day-action-stop-gun-violence-schools/

PASA Women's Caucus Annual Conference "Leaders Lifting Leaders"
May 6 - 8, 2018 Hotel Hershey
**REGISTRATION NOW OPEN**
Featured Speakers...
*Dr. Helen Sobehart - Women Leading Education Across Continents: Lifting Leaders from Here to There
*Dr. Tracey Severns - Courageous Leadership
*Dr. Emilie Lonardi - Lead and Lift: A Call for Females to Aspire to the Superintendency
*Deputy Secretary Matt Stem - Update from the PDE
Registration: https://www.pasa-net.org/wcconf


MAKE YOUR VOICE HEARD! Join the PA Principals Association, the PA Association of School Administrators and the PA Association of Rural and Small Schools for PA Education Leaders Advocacy Day at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, June 19, 2018, at the Capitol in Harrisburg, PA.  
A rally in support of public education and important education issues will be held on the Main Rotunda Steps from 1 p.m. - 2 p.m.
Visits with legislators will be conducted earlier in the day. More information will be sent via email, shared in our publications and posted on our website closer to the event.
To register, send an email to Dr. Joseph Clapper at clapper@paprincipals.org before Friday, June 8, 2018.
Click here to view the PA Education Leaders Advocacy Day 2018 Save The Date Flyer (INCLUDES EVENT SCHEDULE AND IMPORTANT ISSUES.) 

SAVE THE DATE for the 2018 PA Educational Leadership Summit - July 29-31 - State College, PA sponsored by the PA Principals Association, PASA, PAMLE and PASCD.  
This year's Summit will be held from July 29-31, 2018 at the Penn Stater Conference Center Hotel, State College, PA.

Any comments contained herein are my comments, alone, and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of any other person or organization that I may be affiliated with.


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