Welcome to the Missouri Right to Education Volunteer Hub
The Missouri Right to Education is a ballot initiative aiming to amend the Missouri Constitution to make high-quality public education a fundamental right.
About the initiative
The Ballot Language
Be it resolved by the people of the state of Missouri that the Constitution be amended:
Art. IX, Sec. 1(a) of the Constitution is amended to read as follows:
A general diffusion of knowledge and intelligence being essential to the preservation of the rights and liberties of the people,; education shall be a fundamental right. It shall be the duty of the state and general assembly shall to establish and maintain adequate, thorough, and uniform high quality free public schools to provide for the gratuitous instruction of all persons in this state within ages not in excess of twenty-one years as prescribed by law.
What does that mean?
This amendment will protect our public education system from looming threats of privatization, depleted funding, and ensure that every student has access to high-quality public education. It is all about raising the standard for what the state needs to provide for public schools and provide the legal framework for communities to mandate that the legislature prioritizes our children’s education as a fundamental right. It is a constitutional commitment to every teacher and every student, so classrooms can be places where education rights are made real.
Other states have used language like this to great success.
In Tennessee, the use of the word “adequate” provided parents an opportunity to sue the state to stop a $1 billion dollar voucher program that would divert funds to private schools.
In September, the Idaho Education Association used the words “Uniform” and “Thorough” to sue the state to stop vouchers that would do the same.
These three words, in concert with the “fundamental right” to “high quality public schools” make up the entirety of our amendment. Without these words, Idaho and Tennessee would be destined to become Arizona, where vouchers forced closure of 20 public schools just last year, and will continue to for the foreseeable future.
This language has worked to not only stop defunding efforts but to greatly increase funding. In 2023, Pennsylvania won a historic case that will drastically change the education landscape for their schools.
In Massachusetts it led to $1.5 billion in increased funding.
Read more about that here if you want to learn more.
Ready to get on board?
We can’t get this amendment on the ballot without your help. If you are ready to get started, first make sure you have signed up to be a volunteer here. This will ensure you get important updates about the campaign and you’ll be notified when there are volunteer opportunities near you.
Learn how to collect signatures
In order to qualify for the November 2026 ballot, we need to collect 170k valid signatures. That means we need YOU to get signatures out in your community. If you haven’t gathered signatures before, don’t worry. It is an easy process and we are here to help the whole way through.
Quick Reference Guide:
Signers must be registered to vote in Missouri, and they need to write their address as it appears on their voter registration. Missourians can look up their voter registration here. That link is in our Linktree if you ever need to find it!
AN IMPORTANT NOTE:
Our campaign is currently involved in a lawsuit challenging the summary language written by the Secretary of State’s office. The summary that appears at the top of the petition sheet does not accurately describe the initiative, and we’re fighting to ensure that voters get fair and clear information.
We can collect signatures with this inaccurate ballot summary because the constitutional language will not change. When the lawsuit is finished and we have an accurate ballot summary, we will start collecting on sheets with updated language. Until then, show people that are concerned about the summary the actual language on the back of each sheet.
Important: The actual amendment language—the part that would go into the Missouri Constitution—is printed on the back of every petition sheet. We encourage everyone to read that full language to understand exactly what this initiative would do and why it matters.
Getting petitions
Two ways to get petitions to start collecting:
Print your own
Our petitions are single pages, front and back, on 8.5×14 paper. You are free to print your own petitions as long as these specifications are met. If you decide to print at home or get them printed somewhere near you, please email us a picture of the petitions before using them to ensure they are done correctly. You can find the PDF of the petition here.
Request petitions
If you aren’t comfortable printing your own petitions, we can get you some! Contact info@moeducation with your location and how many sheets you would like. We will coordinate with you to make sure you can start collecting!
If you are willing to store petitions for your area and allow people to pick up from you, please reach out now! Your help would be greatly appreciated.
Start Collecting!
Now that you have petitions and know how to collect signatures, it is time to get out there and start collecting! It can be as simple as bringing petitions when you go out and asking those around you or as planned as setting up a table at a community event.
Make sure you watch your email for events we need volunteers for. We need your help finding events to collect at! Share events happening in your area that we should be collecting at (and let us know if you can be there to collect yourself). If you are planning to collect at a particular location, please fill out the form below so we can send people in the area your way!
Ideas for places to collect:
- Large community events
- Outside your local library
- In front of grocery stores
- Coffee shops
- Farmer markets
- Organize your own!
Here are some great conversations starters for while you are out gathering:
- Did you know Missouri is 49th in state funding for public education?
- Would you like to make high-quality public education a fundamental right?
- Have you heard that 36% of school districts in Missouri have moved to a 4-day school week?
- Do you or anyone you know work in a public school?
- Did you know Missouri is 49th in starting teacher pay?
- Do you want to protect public education in Missouri?
Notarizing & Turning in Petitions
Once you’ve filled a sheet, it must be notarized before we can submit it to the state. Here’s how:
Where to Get Your Petitions Notarized
- Respect MO Voters Notary Nights
RMV regularly hosts notary events that they allow us to bring our petitions to as well. Please check with the individual notary on-site to ensure they are comfortable notarizing other initiatives. - Local Libraries & Banks
Many Missouri public libraries and banks have notaries available for free.
(Call ahead to confirm availability.)
Turning in Notarized Petitions
Please hold onto your notarized petitions until we finalize our drop-off locations around the state. Keep petitions flat, dry, and in a safe place.
If you are in or around the St. Louis area, contact [email protected] to turn in notarized petitions.
Tools & Resources
You can find all the resources you need to get out and start collecting in our Volunteer Google Drive. Some important documents are listed here:
Stay Connected
We need to stay connected if we are going to gather 170k signatures by May. Here are a few ways to stay in the loop:
- Sign up for Mighty Networks, a platform for secure communication. This allows volunteers and leadership to communicate with each other, brainstorm ideas, and organize the work we are doing!
- Follow us across social media
- Have questions or need help? Email us: [email protected]
Can’t gather signatures? There are lots of ways to help.
- Be a Notary and organize notary events in your area
- Phone/text banking to friends and network
- Like, comment, and share our social media posts
- Create videos, photos, or graphics for socials or print outs
- Store petitions and distribute sheets to those in your area
- Create a Peer to Peer fundraising page
- Connect us with community groups and leaders in your area
Contact [email protected] with any questions or concerns.
