At a time when our public school students are continuously taking
high-stakes standardized tests which are used to judge our public schools,
students and teachers as "failing" by the results of those tests;
which most often lead to the closing of said "failing" schools and
the handing over of that same school facility and funds from the local public
school district's budget to "school management corporations" that
re-open the schools as "in-district public charter schools”; or
alternately are utilized to deny a student a diploma; while supposedly
showcasing the "success" of corporate backed charter schools who do
not take all students while taking funds from the local school
district at 2-3 times the amount allocated for per-pupil costs of students
staying at the district public schools; a time when here in the United States
foundations like The Walton
Foundation (Walmart), The
Gates Foundation (Bill and Melinda), and The Broad Foundation (Eli and
Edythe) finance the attack upon public education throughout the
nation, the recent National
Day of Action to Reclaim the Promise of Public Education on Monday,
December 9, 2013, was a breathe of fresh air.
Well, maybe not so much to the privatization peddlers who
hawk their wares and policies through fear, intimidation and multi-million
dollar sponsored "research" and "news articles." But for
those of us who never bought the lies; who dug into the raw data behind the
manufactured "proof" and reports; have been fighting for and
defending public education for decades; educators, youth, families, advocates
and community members pushing for investment in our public schools to
ensure all students access to a quality education beyond how
to take a test, for us, this was a wonderful day!
The Boston Education Truth
Coalition (BETC or Boston Truth), a youth-led coalition made up
of students, educators, families and other community members who are
directly affected by public education, which officially formed this past
summer, sponsored the Boston event, The Future of BPS: A Town Hall to
Transform the Public Education Agenda for Boston, which was held in
Cardinal Hall at Madison Park High School in Roxbury.
The town hall agenda was preceded by dinner and an opportunity for interactive activities including: a photo-booth to share why public education is important to you; art activities where you could draw or write what you would see inside your dream school, what a quality school looks like, and a complete the sentence "On our way to better schools...", which could then become part of the ongoing "school bus" and "the school all students deserve" art projects which the coalition plans to have at all future events.
Despite it being a cold and crummy night, over 250 attendees came out from every neighborhood of Boston, which further substantiates what became evident during the recent elections: the right of all students to a high quality public education is the civil rights issue of our time as it affects the majority of people nationwide. The diversity of Boston was clearly evident among the youth, families, educators, community and labor (union) members who attended along with those in charge of public education, such as Boston Public Schools Interim Superintendent, John McDonough, elected officials and their representatives and Fran Lawrence, the Executive Vice President of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) (a sponsor of the Reclaim the Promise campaign).
The formal agenda started with a video clip of the 1990 visit to Madison Park High School of Nelson Mandela, in honor of his accomplishments and life-long emphasis on the importance of education.
"Education is the most powerful weapon which we can use in
order to prepare our youth for their role as leaders of tomorrow." Nelson
Mandela states to the crowd filling the MPHS auditorium in 1990. This comment,
along with Nelson Mandela's other remarks regarding students dropping out and
his charge to the youth to take it upon themselves to ensure that they receive
the highest education possible, seemed to affect attendees just as strongly
today as it did those who attended the 1990 event, as these issues are just as
relevant today.
After a moment of reflection the official event got under way with, appropriately for a youth-led coalition, Alex Roman, a member of Boston Truth and the Boston-area Youth Organizing Project (BYOP), getting everyone to chant along with him:
"Everywhere we go - people want to know
why we're here - so we tell them,
we are the *students/parents/teachers - the mighty mighty
students/parents/teachers
fighting for justice - and an education"
*each separately
Alex definitely brought everyone together - even our city leaders were
chanting along with Alex! This fabulous "ice-breaker" was followed by
introductions of a few representatives of the diverse coalition membership:
Melonie Griffiths, a BPS parent and Jobs
With Justice (JWJ) Organizer; myself as a BPS parent and Boston Parent Union (BPU) representative;
and Jessica Tang, a Boston Teachers Union
(BTU) representative. Each representative had a role which included
acknowledging politicians and education leaders, the introduction of a video of
interviews of some of the coalition members, and the introduction of Fran
Lawrence, AFT EVP, who spoke about the nationwide fight to reclaim the promise
of public education while standing united together.
Carlos Rojas, another youth member of Boston Truth as well
as the Student Immigrant Movement
(SIM), Youth on
Board (YOB), and the Boston
Student Advisory Council (BSAC), then gave a brief overview of the history
of the Boston Education Truth Coalition and the "Principles That Unite
Us" which were created through multiple community meetings over
the past couple of years, sometimes utilizing the increasingly popular charrette process
which ensures all voices are heard. It should also be noted that the
principles have been and will continue to be an evolving document through
future meetings, town halls and other discussions, such as those that took
place Monday night.
Each one of the eight principles was introduced by student and youth members, who had posters stating the principle, which they read along with a brief description of it, and also spoke individually about what that particular principle meant to them personally. All of them did a great job in front of a huge audience, which is daunting enough, especially when sharing your personal feelings - they truly are the "mighty mighty students!"
After all of the above took place, attendees took part in facilitated discussions regarding the principles and each person was asked to give input on what was needed to help BPS ensure a quality education for all students. The goal was to continue to add to the principles with what was shared as well as synthesizing all the comments for presentation at a public hearing being held the next night at English High School by Mayor-Elect Walsh's Education Transition Committee. Over the next hour each group discussed their thoughts on three questions:
What is BPS doing well?
Where does BPS fall short?
What do we want to propose to BPS?
The small group discussions were facilitated by youth members of the coalition while other coalition members took extensive notes. Looking around it was clear to see that the level of engagement was high as animated conversations were taking place at every table. At the end of the hour allotted for these discussions, a few of the facilitators reported back regarding what their group felt were the main issues to be shared with the coalition, BPS leadership, all legislators, and of course, Mayor-Elect Walsh's Education Transition Committee the next night.
Attendees then volunteered to come up and share their reflections on
the night, ideas and comments.
The event came to a close with Alex, Jessica, Melonie and myself
thanking all who attended, explaining the next steps, and urging all attendees
to continue to speak up, share their suggestions, get involved with their
schools and the district, their local representatives, community and elected
leaders and the coalition and/or its member groups.
Though there were many adult "big-wigs" in attendance, I
believe the event was such a success primarily because it was our ultimate
stakeholders, the students and youth who attend our schools, who are leading
the movement here in Boston. The parents, families, educators, community and
labor members, though important in their own right, can never give the same
perspective as our students who have the experience of being the guinea pigs of
corporate education reform and are already paying the price daily.
One thing that I found concerning: not one of our Boston School Committee (BSC) members attended the event. The members were personally invited via hand-delivery by Deross Jordan, BSAC/YOUNG member, in conjunction with his verbal invitation and the opportunity to dine with him if they came a little early. I was fairly certain a couple of them would not attend, but am disappointed in all of the BSC members , because this was an opportunity for them to hear from so many of the stakeholders of BPS and have some truly meaningful conversations with many who will probably never attend a BSC meeting. Hmmm, maybe that exact prospect is why they failed to show up?
One thing that I found concerning: not one of our Boston School Committee (BSC) members attended the event. The members were personally invited via hand-delivery by Deross Jordan, BSAC/YOUNG member, in conjunction with his verbal invitation and the opportunity to dine with him if they came a little early. I was fairly certain a couple of them would not attend, but am disappointed in all of the BSC members , because this was an opportunity for them to hear from so many of the stakeholders of BPS and have some truly meaningful conversations with many who will probably never attend a BSC meeting. Hmmm, maybe that exact prospect is why they failed to show up?
Since the formation of Boston Truth, and especially since Monday night,
I have heard from a couple of people I know that they believe the principles
are dictated by the BTU, AFT and other educator and union based groups. Though
the unions and others are in agreement with the principles, and indeed did have
a voice in developing them, the assumption that the principles are dictated by
them is false, and to continue to promote that fallacy dismisses the voices of
thousands of invested students, parents, families and other community members
and the time they gave to develop them. Those who continue to believe that
the principles are dictated by the AFT, BTU, et al; that members and supporters
of Boston Truth, and other groups like it across the country are "just
union sympathizers," may never believe otherwise no matter how much of the
truth is shared with them.
Take heart though! Since Monday night I have heard from so many
people who wanted to share how wonderful the event was and how it inspired
them, inclusive of BPS administrators and politicians. All week I have
continued to see the affects of the event as, through email and social media,
new voices are joining with us. At Tuesday evening's public hearing, and
Saturday's Town Hall, both held by Mayor-Elect Walsh, the majority of voices
continued to speak up to reclaim the promise here in the birthplace of public
education. The tide has turned, and will continue to gain strength and momentum
as each day more people become involved and sign onto the principles that unite
us. They join in to reclaim not only the promise of public education, but also
promises made by our elected leaders. We are united across the city, state and
country, and unlike those who would dismiss us, our numbers grow daily.
I was personally most inspired by the youth whose voices were evident
throughout the principles as well as the night. As I said during the
acknowledgements: "If it weren't for our students, our youth, none
of us would be here." I have watched the youth groups and
movement in Boston flourish over the years, but having the opportunity to work
with them as part of the coalition, and spend a lot of time with them thanks to
my own daughter getting very involved with BSAC, I see that they are no longer
being ignored as they once were (speaking from experience); that those in
positions of power are starting to listen and work with them, at least the
smart ones are!
Over the 20 years I have been a BPS parent, I have been actively
involved with some of the most dynamic groups around: each of my children's
school parent and site councils; especially the original Boston Special Needs
Parent Advisory Council (SNPAC) and the Citywide Parent Council (CPC). I have
to admit that, other than when lobbying at both the state and federal level regarding
special education laws and, in 2002, fighting to retain funding for all the
citywide PACs as Chair of SNPAC, Monday night's event was truly one of the most
inspiring and empowering events I have attended!
I urge those who read this, no matter your role in the community, to at
the very least sign the Boston Truth petition to our elected
officials and get involved with your local school and community group. If you
want to become involved with Boston Truth, please sign up for the email group
or feel free to contact me directly.
Event slideshow: beginning to end!
Have questions or just want to see what I am working on? Feel free to email me at karen.kastmcbride@gmail.com or follow me via Twitter: @BPSNightmare.