The Oakland Education Week in Review: 8/26-9/2

Last week– looking at the potential Kaiser closure, how we can use our building for the public, a mom’s first day of K, another look at show should get into what schools and the “opportunity ticket,” a tragedy and how you can help, a truce in the charter wars and much much more, please read, share and get involved

Oakland:

California:

Other Stories:

How You Can Help:

Oakland:

California:

Other Stories:

  • A Note to Nick Hanauer: Income Inequality Hardly a Surprise If You Grew Up Poor in America and Abandoning Education Reform Not Going to Help Black and Brown Students
    • Recently, Nick Hanauer wrote an article for The Atlantic titled “Better Schools Won’t Fix America” in which his main argument is that education is not the answer to economic inequality. The article took over my timeline. When I saw that it was the article of the day, I made space in my calendar to read it. I sat in my office, carved out 20 minutes and was prepared to be enlightened. Instead, I got an article from a billionaire telling me something that anyone who grew up poor in this country already knew. However, I am grateful to Hanauer for his insight because it helped me better understand how many of our allies think. So let’s dive into his arguments and start a conversation.
  • The war on charters is a war to deny minority opportunity
    • Despite their enormous successes, charter schools in New York and across the country are in a precarious spot heading into the new school year. In New York, state test results last week showed that charter schools in every region outperformed traditional public schools in English and math proficiency — by double digits.
  • What’s so Special about “Special” Education?
    • “Special” education shouldn’t be that special.   Our current system artificially divides students, provides excuses for failure, and tends to hurt rather than help the intended beneficiaries, all the while walling out a whole range of students who should benefit from additional resources but don’t technically qualify.
  • North Carolina Police Cuff Black Man in His Own Home
    • Police literally arrested a black man in his own home, took his firearm, refused to listen to him, & even after he explained to them what was happening—they put him in the police car.
  • Betsy DeVos Wants Larger Class Sizes and Fewer Teachers
    • In our society, there are so many hot takes offered each day that it’s almost impossible for any single statement to cut through the clutter. As a result, these hot takes can be taken as truth and fact because of the absence of challenging viewpoints. However, sometimes, the rare statement makes us pause for a double take and demands a response. This week, one of those statements came directly from the halls of the U.S. Congress.
  • Kentucky Principal Who Tried to Ban LGBT Books Arrested for Possessing and Distributing Child Pornography
    • Phillip Todd Wilson, 54, a Kentucky principal who first came to fame in 2009 for banning books with “homosexual content” from his high school is back in the news. Wilson was arrested Tuesday on charges of possession and distribution of child pornography.
  • Being Black is Not a Risk Factor
    • In this essay, I will focus on the cultural, ecological and structural forces that enhance minority children’s capabilities in different domains (e.g. social, emotional and cognitive) and across different developmental periods (e.g., infancy, childhood and adolescence) as well as identify pathways to positive development. In other words, I will focus on positive development, broadly defined as research that focuses on adaptation and adjustment rather than maladjustment and adversity.
  • A Wake-Up Call on Student Homelessness
    • Across America, there are more than 1.3 million students from preschool through 12th grade who experience homelessness. And so often, these children are hidden in plain sight. Fearing stigma if they self-identify, homeless students remain under the radar without the supports they desperately need from their schools, which offer stability and a path out of poverty and homelessness.
  • Rep. Bass Enters Legacy Lived And Left By Nipsey Hussle Into The Congressional Record
    • Today, Rep. Karen Bass (D-Calif.), spoke on the House Floor shortly prior to entering Nipsey Hussle’s contributions to South Los Angeles into the Congressional Record.
  • A Suburb Believed in Liberal Ideals. Then Came a New Busing Plan.
    • This suburb, with its high-performing schools, seems a haven of diversity and progressiveness. Signs that trumpet “Stigma-free Town” and “Hate Has No Home Here” hang from lampposts and, after a series of fatal police shootings across the country, “Black Lives Matter” placards popped up on lawns.

How You Can Help:

  • Click Here to Support Jovani Funeral Expenses 
    • Jovani was a very beautiful person inside and out. The ones who had the chance to meet him couldn’t tell you other wise. Unfortunately we are here in a position we never thought we would be in. We had to say goodbye sooner than we thought. He touched so many peoples live’s. Jovani was loved by so many. This Saturday Aug 24, 2019 we lost him in a tragic accident. At only 15 we lost him. The entire family is in despair. Where do you go now?We ask for your help during this difficult time. All donations will go towards funeral expenses to give him the proper burial he deserves.All donations will be received by his parents Benjamin and Adriana. We would like to thank everyone who has been with us, reached out to us, and kept our family in your prayers. If you have any questions please contact me. We would like to give his parents the peace of mind during this very difficult time.
What do you think?

More Comments