Monroe County Education Association

09/06/2026

Dearest reader,

Apparently, Lady Budgetdown’s identity has become quite the popular research project.

Multiple times in the past week, I have been asked, and in some cases rather insistently, to identify myself.

So perhaps it is time to save everyone a little correspondence.

NO.

Lady Budgetdown is anonymous by design, and she will remain that way.

There is a rather simple reason this works: you do not need to trust me.

You do not need my name.
You do not need my résumé.
You do not need my occupation, education, politics, friends, enemies, or pedigree.

You need the receipts.

If I tell you a district spent $4 million, I should show you the record containing the $4 million.

If I tell you administrative spending increased, you should be able to examine the years I compared.

If I question a bond, contract, budget, audit, staffing trend or expenditure, you should be able to look at the underlying documents and decide whether my question is fair.

And if I get something wrong? Bring me the receipt. Lady Budgetdown has never claimed infallibility, and corrections belong in the ledger too.

That is a considerably more useful standard of credibility than knowing the name of the person holding the abacus.

Curiously, nobody needs my identity to challenge a number. A budget does not change because of who reads it. An audit does not acquire a different total after learning my surname.

So if anyone would like to challenge my methodology, calculations, sources, or conclusions, pull up a chair. Those conversations are welcome.

But if the question is simply:

“Who are you?”

I’m afraid the answer will remain terribly unsatisfying.

My identity isn’t one of the receipts. 🪶

With receipts and respect,
Lady Budgetdown

09/06/2026

Love your Mother

Once called "the most dangerous woman in America," Mary Harris "Mother" Jones was a prolific workers' rights advocate in the late 19th and early 20th century.

Born in Cork, Ireland, Jones fled to North America during the Great Famine of the 1840s. After her husband and four children died in the Yellow Fever epidemic of 1867, Jones moved to Chicago and set up a dressmaking shop, which was destroyed in 1871 by the Great Chicago Fire.

As she helped to rebuild the city from the ashes, Jones rebuilt herself as a labor organizer, working for The Knights of Labor and United Mine Workers — gaining the nickname "Mother" for her maternalistic style.

While organizing West Virginia coal miners seeking higher wages and safe working conditions, Mother Jones leaned into her mother persona, questioning the courage and masculinity of coal miners who were reluctant to join the union.

"If you are too cowardly to fight, I will fight," she told coal miners on the steps of the capitol building in Charleston, West Virginia in 1912. To recalcitrant miners she added, "You ought to be ashamed of yourselves... to see one old woman who is not afraid of all the blood-hounds."

📸: Mother Jones attending the 1915 hearings of the federal Commission on Industrial Relations at the New York City Hall (Bain News Service/Library of Congress)

09/05/2026

📬 The 2026 Fall Aware is on its way!🍂

Our latest edition was dropped off at the post office yesterday, which means district residents could start seeing it in their mailboxes as early as today!

Can’t wait for your copy—or don’t live in the district? Check out the digital edition here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1XbcY4zon7IoExst_0Ks6qfaDpsdh18DT/view?usp=drive_link

A huge THANK YOU to the district staff and community members who helped bring this edition together. It truly takes a team, and we’re excited to share the finished product with our community!

Take a look, and enjoy the holiday weekend!

09/05/2026

09/05/2026

Explore the Schedule

09/05/2026

09/04/2026

Scores for M-STEP and college-readiness assessments released Friday show proficiency rates vary sharply by district and school with little change statewide from a year ago.