This isn't meant to scare you

Claudio -- Megan Allen is a fifth-grade teacher in Tampa, Florida. At her elementary school, 90 percent of the students qualify for free or reduced lunch. Many live in poverty, with unstable home lives -- some have parents in prison, others go hungry over the weekends. But at school, they're winning science fairs, challenging themselves, and eating two hot meals a day. For Megan's 36 fifth graders, school is a safe place. The budget cuts known as the sequester could change that. In the county where Megan teaches, 142 schools stand to lose $3 million in funding. The sequester could also slash as much as $2 million in federal funding for special education. When those cuts kick in, Megan's students could lose teachers that help them every day -- for example, the folks who coach them through tricky arithmetic, or give those who are having reading trouble the special attention they need. The Head Start programs that got these students ready for kindergarten will be dramatically cut down. Their class sizes could go up, leaving less time for individual attention. The sequester isn't a list of numbers made up to scare you. It's a very real thing that will negatively impact real people -- like Megan's 36 students and their families. Congress needs to hear those stories. They need to know that their inaction has consequences -- that's the only way we'll put an end to these cuts. Share your story right now on how the sequester is affecting your community: http://my.barackobama.com/Share-Your-Sequester-Story Thanks for speaking up. Lindsay Lindsay Siler National Director of Issue Campaigns Organizing for Action ---------------- Let's finish what we started. Chip in $25 or more to Organizing for Action, the grassroots movement that will get the job done.

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