CREATING SAFE & HEALTHY LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS
I know from my many conversations with community members that student safety is a critical issue for our ward. This is true for both DCPS and charter schools. Many families face challenging commutes getting to and from school, buildings often have deferred maintenance or are going through modernization, and too many students don’t feel safe and supported in their school environments. I commute several miles a day taking my child to and from school, and she’s also struggled in the past with school conditions that made it difficult to learn. I also know from my time in the classroom that teachers need to feel safe and valued themselves to create a positive learning environment for students.
As your state board member, I will work towards the following:
Support increased safety getting to and from schools by ensuring access to safe passage programs for Ward 5 schools and for the many students who travel outside of Ward 5.
Work with communities to address the dangerous traffic conditions that exist near many of our buildings.
Advocate for Ward 5 student, family, and teacher needs during the modernization efforts taking place in our ward.
Fight to see that preventative maintenance requests are addressed of in a timely manner.
Work to see that Ward 5 students who receive special education services are getting access to the supports they need and are entitled to under state and federal law.
Elevate the voices of both DCPS and charter schools across Ward 5 in funding conversations to make sure that all schools have the financial resources to create safe and healthy learning environments for all students. '
Listen to our teachers to better understand what they need to be successful and elevate these needs to the appropriate policy makers.
Build opportunities for cross Ward community engagement so that parents, students, teachers, and advocates have a collective voice in advocating for safe and healthy learning environments as well as other issues.
FUTURE READINESS
We must fight to make sure that our students are exposed to the knowledge and experiences they need to prepare them for what comes next. My work with schools and states across the country have shown me the importance of putting academic and career readiness experiences on equal footing. This means students need to have access to both rigorous academic instruction and actively participate in meaningful college and career experiences.
As your state board member, I will work towards the following:
Advocate for our school accountability system to give schools credit when students complete meaningful career readiness experiences that can lead to meaningful credentials.
Champion career exposure in the early grades and college and career readiness experiences like work-based learning, apprenticeships, career and technical education, and dual enrollment in high school. This includes supporting the growth of advanced technical centers like the one in ward 5.
Advocate for continued financial support of valuable data collection efforts so that we can better understand what our students need while they’re in school and how our alumni are doing once they graduate.
Re-imagine the way our high schools are structured by learning from best practices in existing DC initiatives and from around the country. This includes exploring whether and how we can safely and equitably integrate emerging technologies into learning experiences.
Make sure that academic standards encourage mastery of the rigorous academic knowledge and skills students need to be successful in life.
Work to make sure schools are implementing evidence based practices like the science of reading to support student’s academic development.
STUDENT ATTENDANCE
Too many DC students are missing too many days of school. As a classroom teacher and debate coach in DCPS schools, I know how critical attendance is to making sure that each and every student is present and engaged every day. As we create safe and healthy learning environments and expand future ready opportunities, we must also take deliberate steps to support our students in attending school regularly.
As your state board member, I will work towards the following:
Advocate for continual expansion of high-impact tutoring services so that all students feel ready and able to succeed in school every day.
Elevate strategies to improve attendance rates in the crucial years of 8th and 9th grade to prevent higher rates of high school absenteeism.
Identify bright spots across DC to uncover what is working in reducing chronic absenteeism and spread it to more schools.
Engage with national experts to bring best practices to the attention of our policy makers.
Support access to a diverse range of after school programs that engage students and encourage participation in school.