EDUCATION JUSTICE
As powerful interests seek to silence critical dialogue and sow division among our communities in an already-polarized climate, we know that ensuring integrity and cultural responsiveness in our school curricula, advancing policies that promote equity and justice in our schools and ensure all students can thrive, and shifting the narrative to bring our communities together is tantamount. Here’s how we are working across Vermont and New Hampshire to make this happen.
Our Work in New Hampshire
Honest and inclusive education
We work in coalition with stakeholders impacted by the “Divisive Concepts” legislation passed in New Hampshire’s State Budget in summer 2021, and with local leaders pushing to change the narrative and develop policy solutions that protect and bolster social equity and justice in education, and get them passed.
See one of our events from this summer featured in Rethinking Schools
Check out our latest work and resource list for organizing communities around honest, equitable, and culturally relevant education.
Fair funding
We support state and district policies that ensure all of our public schools have the resources to ensure all students can thrive.
Watch The Importance of School Budgets & What You Need to Know
Police in schools
The data shows that the presence of School Resource Officers has a disproportionately harmful impact on Black and brown students and students with disabilities. We support policies that ensure all students can feel safe in school and are not criminalized in their educational environment.
Watch our Traverse episode, Do Police Belong in Schools?
Our Work in Vermont
Honest and inclusive education
We support local leaders in pushing back against harmful resolutions aimed at restricting teaching on issues of systemic racism and sexism, and in advancing district policies that promote equity and inclusion in our schools.
Fair funding
We support efforts to ensure that all of our public schools have the resources to hire and retain enough educators and fully support the needs of all students. This includes changing the taxation system used to fund public education, and fixing the formula used to calculate funding allocations for rural, low-income and ELL-heavy districts.
Police in schools
The data shows that the presence of School Resource Officers has a disproportionately harmful impact on Black and brown students and students with disabilities. We support policies that ensure all students can feel safe in school and are not criminalized in their educational environment.
Read about the impact of police in Vermont schools
Watch Alternatives to Policing in Vermont Schools: How to Organize for Safer Schools in Your Community facilitated by RDI Movement Politics Director Kiah Morris
Read about the August 2021 decision to end the SRO program in St. Albans schools, following the advocacy of RDI Catalyst Leadership cohort member Reier Erickson