ANNUAL REPORT 2009 California | Colorado | Illinois | Kansas | New York | Pennsylvania | DC | Massachusetts | Maryland
Mar 23, 2016
ANNUAL REPORT 2009
California | Colorado | Illinois | Kansas | New York | Pennsylvania | DC | Massachusetts | Maryland
welcome | 1
timeline of action | 2
committee reports | 4
policy points | 5
future work | 7
about aej | 8
1
offered real proposals for solving some of the most
intransigent problems facing our nations’ schools.
Perhaps most importantly, it was clear that they
represented millions of other low-income students of
color – students who bear the burden of our country’s
greatest failings – but who also have the wisdom and
skills to address those challenges and to build the
political will to put real solutions in effect.
In 2009, AEJ took the first steps towards building a
national community of these young leaders. In 2010,
we look forward to supporting them as they take on
even bigger battles. This report is an update from
the different committees helping to develop AEJ's
infrastructure and program work and highlights the
AEJ activities from around the country.
Thank you for helping to make it possible.
Sincerely,
Strategy Team
Alliance for Education Justice
WelcomeDear Friends:
A few short months ago, dozens of high school
students who are leaders in local struggles for
education justice throughout the country met for
the first time in Washington D.C. to talk about how
they could work together to move a national agenda
for education reform. Their primary response to the
meeting was unanimous – why did we wait so long
to do this?
Within days, the students had prepared a panel of
representatives to meet with some of DC’s highest
profile education policymakers, including U.S.
Secretary of Education Arne Duncan. They came
from vastly different experiences but they spoke with
one voice – highlighting the need for comprehensive
immigration reform and college access for immigrant
students, an end to the school-to-prison pipeline,
and rigorous college and career preparation for all
students.
Unsurprisingly, they were received warmly inside the
beltway. They were well-prepared, insightful, and
January 2009
FORmATiONFormation Committee starts
to meet over the next 4 months
to develop structure, shared
principles, and values.
Movement Strategy Center asked
to help coordinate the alliance in
the development stage.
April 2009
NATiONAL CONvENiNg iN PhiLAdELPhiA, PA19 Groups approve the founding
documents. Strategy Team (10 groups),
is approved as leadership for the alliance,
and committees form for fundraising,
policy, and youth engagement.
Alliance for Educational Justice
is official!
Timeline of Action
Youth Convening“We are unified
by the same struggles. We are all here to
stand up for our beliefs and continue the fight for justice.”
AEJ organized a national convening of member
organizations and youth leaders. We had 80 people (1-2
staff and 2-3 youth from each member organization)
go to Washington, D.C. for an orientation to AEJ,
federal education policies and to begin relationship
building. Before the convening, each member group
held orientations, regional meetings and prep sessions
with their youth and members to get feedback on AEJ
policy work, overall direction and to get a better sense
of the national educational policy landscape. At the
convening, youth facilitated icebreakers, small groups
and planned the panel and all the presentations with
the Department of Education staff.
Dylan from Denver said, “I am extremely grateful
that I have the opportunity to be a part of a national
coalition that will create an educational system which
possesses strong moral values and true equality.
Although all of us in AEJ come from different parts of
the country, we are unified by the same struggles. We
are all here to stand up for our beliefs and continue
the fight for justice."
3
January 2010
dEvELOPmENTYouth Strategy Team
and Delegate structure
adopted.
Summer 2009
REgiONALsRegional meetings happen in
Denver, Wichita, Los Angeles,
Oakland and the Northeast
(New York, Philly, Boston,
Baltimore, and Washington,
D.C.).
Groups start to meet each
other, learn about national
power players and give input
in AEJ policy platform.
September 2009
NATiONAL YOUTh CONvENiNg iN WAshiNgTON, d.C.All groups bring 2 youth members and adopt
national policy platform.
AEJ has a meeting with the Department of
Education senior staff and has lobby visits
with 20 legislative offices.
D.C. Lobby VisitsMembers and youth then went to see their
representatives and senators from their districts and
introduced AEJ to the education staff. We had over 20
lobby visits and office drop-ins. We are now assessing
how we will use the contacts and preparing our
campaign strategy.
Committee ReportssTRATEgY TEAmThe ST provides the overall leadership for the
organization. They meet every few weeks and make
the decisions about what projects AEJ should work
on, when to have convenings, who to work in alliance
with and oversee the budget and staff. This year the
team was really busy putting together all the founding
documents for AEJ: structure, political principles,
membership, and general guiding agreements.
They successfully fundraised for staff and 2 national
convenings. Each Strategy Team member is on a
committee (or two), and have helped to move the
work of AEJ at warp speed! In January, the Strategy
Team met in Chicago for their annual retreat to
evaluate the past year, create a communications and
media strategy, and finalize the workplan for the next
year.
sTRUCTUREThe structure committee has been hard at work this
first year to give AEJ a foundation in its formation. The
committee developed the proposals for membership,
Strategy Team, Allies and Anchors/Coordinators.
We looked at other national networks and modeled
our structure based on successful examples. We are
currently working on finalizing MOU’s or formal
agreements between the member organizations and
AEJ and will prepare AEJ for its next stage of growth
to involve our parent allies.
FUNdRAisiNgWe had a strong first year in fundraising. The
committee had a successful trip to New York to
introduce AEJ and are working on several prospective
leads for next year.
Thanks to the following foundations for their
support:
surdna seasons Fund
ms Foundation hazen
CPER Ford
Atlantic Philanthropies
YOUTh ENgAgEmENTWe started the year off at the Youth convening
committee and helped to prepare for the regional AEJ
meetings and national youth convening that happened
in Washington, D.C. There are youth representatives
from AEJ member organizations that help to discuss
and prepare for AEJ activities. We realized there was
a need for a committee to think more about youth
involvement and development so we expanded the
committee to be about Youth Engagement.
The committee will help to prepare the Youth Justice
Corp project, regional meetings and is a place to discuss
youth involvement in all things AEJ. An important
proposal that was developed from the committee was
the creation of the Youth Strategy Team. AEJ is led by a
Strategy Team of 9 members organizations’ Executive
Directors and Lead Organizers, who meet monthly and
who set the direction for the organization. We have
now established that each Strategy Team member
organization will also bring one youth leader into the
process and we will have a Youth Strategy Team that
will work alongside our (adult) Strategy Team.
The YST will have their first meeting at the upcoming
Strategy Team retreat in Chicago January 2010. Look
out for more on the YST and YJC!
5
POLiCYIn 2009, the AEJ Policy Committee has been busy
developing policy proposals to help promote
educational justice at the federal level, researching
power players in the new federal administration,
and setting the stage to launch a national campaign
in 2010. This past June, at the first national AEJ
convening in Philadelphia, members of the Policy
Committee facilitated a process to develop a broad
policy vision that aligned with the visions and values
of all AEJ member organizations. The overarching
tagline for the AEJ policy platform is “Transforming
the 21st Century: Preparation for College, Careers,
and Community Participation.”
The Policy Committee developed an input session
to get feedback from student leaders and staff of
AEJ organizations across the nation. Based on this
feedback, AEJ member organizations approved a
broad federal policy platform at the national youth
convening in D.C. this past September that includes:
(1) access to higher education, financial aid, and
documentation for all students regardless of status;
(2) meaningful college and career preparation for all
students; (3) an end to tracking; and (4) an end to the
school-to-prison pipeline by supporting restorative
justice and alternatives to punitive discipline.
The Policy Committee is currently working with
member organizations to launch a national campaign
in early 2010 to influence the reauthorization of
the federal Elementary and Secondary Education
Act, currently known as No Child Left Behind, and
ensure that key elements of AEJ’s educational justice
framework are included in the new legislation.
Policy Points2010 Priority Federal Policy areas for AEJ
dREAm ACT / COmPREhENsivE 1. immigRATiON REFORmFull access to higher education, financial
aid, and a pathway to documentation for
undocumented students
COLLEgE ANd CAREER PREP FOR 2. ALLMore federal funding to prepare students for
college and careers
ENd TRACkiNg3. Academically rigorous and challenging courses
and real-world apprenticeships to prepare
students for meaningful, living-wage careers
and college
ENd ThE sChOOL-TO-PRisON 4. PiPELiNEAlternatives to zero tolerance, suspension, and
expulsion and the expansion restorative justice
programs that address the emotional, social,
and disciplinary needs of students
Youth Panelists included: Eric Yates, Philadelphia
Student Union; Fabia, Desis Rising Up and Moving, New
York; Maria Paula Degillo, Albany Park Neighborhood
Council, Chicago; Geneva L. Tucker, Sunflower
Community Action, Wichita; Dylan Torres, Jovenes
Unidos, Denver; Karla Elis Mota-Rojas, Youth United
for Change, Philadelphia; Jaritza Geigel, Make the Road,
New York; and Joseph Toledo, Youth United for Change,
Philadelphia.
We had four senior Department of Education staff
attend: Russlyn Ali, Peter Cunningham, Peter Groff
and Carmel Martin. They agreed to work with AEJ and
keep communications open with us.
Department of Education PanelAt the end of the 3 day convening, the AEJ youth
facilitated and presented on a panel with Department
of Education senior staff to talk about the most
pressing issues facing youth today and to present
their concerns to the Dept. of Education.
Maria explained to the panel that “I am a former
Chicago Public High School student here to speak
about the need for social and emotional learning
and social and emotional support in our high schools
nation wide. I dropped out of high school because an
uncaring system pushed me out. Instead of trying to
encourage me to stay in school, the school staff told
me to drop out.”
"I am a former Chicago Public High School student here to speak about the need for social and emotional learning,
and social and emotional support in our high schools nation wide."
7
Preparing for National Policy WorkAEJ co-hosted a series of regional meetings
(with the Advancement Project and the Forum
for Education and Democracy) to prepare and
strategize for the re-authorization of ESEA / No
Child Left Behind. We are helping to organize 10-15
regional meetings across the country to see what
people are doing around re-authorization and
see if there is some common goals we can work
around. The meetings have had youth, community
organizers, legal advocates, policy analysts and
researchers who are all concerned with education
issues come together to share their thoughts.
It has been a great learning experience and has
been a way for organizations to meet AEJ. By
end of February 2010, we will have had meetings
in Denver, Philadelphia, Oakland, Los Angeles,
Chicago, New York, Boston, Washington, D.C.,
Jackson, and North Carolina. We will work with
AP to produce a report to share our findings.
HistoryAEJ groups first came together as an alliance in late 2008.
For many years before, there had been discussions about
creating a national educational justice network focused
on youth and parent organizing groups but nothing was
created. In the beginning of 2009, a small working group laid
the groundwork for strategic joint action and articulated a
long-term vision and infrastructure for our work together.
The groups participating in this alliance share an exciting
alternative to the private market agenda for education.
They represent a proven approach in the local communities
in which they work, but one that has been marginalized
in the mainstream education reform debates. This group
of organizations is united by the common frameworks
of human and civil rights, racial justice and equality and
equity. Their work is broader than education reform; it is
also about movement building.
Who Are We?AEJ is a multiracial and multigenerational network led by and directly accountable to our affected stakeholders –
young people in public schools and their parents, families, and communities. The emerging alliance is comprised
of general members and a strategy team that is leading the planning and organizational development process.
These groups combined have decades of collective experience engaging young people, parents, as well as local and
statewide educational change efforts.
Albany Park Neighborhood Council (Chicago, IL)
Baltimore Algebra Project (Baltimore, MD)
Boston Youth Organizing Project (Boston, MA)
Brighton Park Neighborhood Council (Chicago, IL)
Californians for Justice (California)
Coleman Advocates for Children and Youth (San Francisco, CA)
Community Coalition (Los Angeles, CA)
Desis Rising Up and Moving (New York City, New York)
Future of Tomorrow (Brooklyn, New York)
InnerCity Struggle (Los Angeles, CA)
Kenwood Oakland Community Organization (Chicago, IL)
Make the Road, New York (New York City, NY)
Mothers on the Move (Bronx, New York)
Padres y Jovenes Unidos (Denver, CO)
Philadelphia Student Union (Philadelphia, PA)
Sistas & Brothas United (New York)
Sunflower Community Action (Wichita, KS)
Youth Together (Oakland, CA)
Youth United for Change (Philadelphia, PA)
Youth Education Alliance (Washington, D.C.)
9
Strategy Team Membersspecial thanks to the founding strategy Team. They
have put countless hours into developing the alliance
and their leadership has had a significant impact on
the building this movement for educational justice.
Albany Park Neighborhood Council - Jenny Arwade
Californians for Justice - Jeremy Lahoud
Community Coalition - Alberto Retana (now with
Dept. of Education)
Kenwood Oakland Community Organization -
Jhaytan Travis
Make the Road, New York - Oona Chatterjee
Padres y Jovenes Unidos - Pam Martinez
Philadelphia Student Union - Nijmie Dzurinko
Sistas and Brothas United / NWBCCC - Mustafa
Sullivan and Laura Vasquez
Youth Education Alliance - Jonathan Stith
Youth United for Change - Andi Perez
And welcome to our new Youth Strategy Team that
started January 2010!
Albany Park Neighborhood Council - Sandra Rector
Californians for Justice - Askari Gonzalez
Kenwood Oakland Community Organization
- Brandi Wilson
Make the Road, New York - Jaritza Geigel
Northwest Bronx Community & Clergy Coalition
- Miguel Rodriguez
Padres Unidos - Leidy Robledo
Philadelphia Student Union - Eric Yates
Youth Education Alliance - Ayanna Sutton
Youth United for Change - Ashley Jones
AlliAnCE For EduCATionAl JuSTiCEa project of Movement Strategy Center
1611 Telegraph Avenue #510 | Oakland | CA | 94612AllianceForEducationalJustice.org
ConnectAEJ is planning to kick off its first campaign around
re-authorization of the Elementary and secondary
school Act (EsEA) this year.
You can join us by signing off on our platform as a
supporter and joining regional actions in your area.
Check our website for more details:
ALL I A NCEFOREDUC AT ION AL JUS T ICE .org
AEJ is about building a movement.We believe in building inter-generational and multi-issue coalitions that bring us together as a nation to develop
strategic campaigns that improve our education system through the lens of race, poverty, gender and immigration
status. AEJ is the only national network that is developing youth to lead the effort in a national fight for educational
justice and are beginning to focus on bringing the critical voices of parents into the leadership of our work.
WhAT is EdUCATiONAL JUsTiCE?Alliance for Educational Justice is united by the principles of racial and economic justice, human and civil rights,
and equity and fair resources for ALL youth. Educational justice means fair and equitable resources for schools, a
quality public education for all as an essential element in our democracy, and addressing income, race and gender
inequities in our society that play out in our public school system.
AEJ is working on issues that include college access for all, fighting for the rights of undocumented students,
demanding youth voices in school governance, presenting alternatives to punitive school discipline and preventing
the criminalization of young people. Groups in the alliance share the goals of changing how high schools operate,
creating more meaningful relationships between students and teachers, and developing opportunities for youth and
parents to effectively assert their voices in education policy debates and decisions.
WhAT dO WE WANT?The Alliance for Educational Justice envisions a 21st Century Education System that prepares all young people for
college, fulfilling careers, and community leadership. Students will be prepared to be critical thinkers and citizens
(documented and undocumented) positioned to participate in and transform their lives, their work, and our
democracy. Instead of a system that prepares some for college and careers and others for prison and low-wage
labor, the 21st Century Education System we imagine creates a path for all toward an equitable and bright 21st
Century America.