Earlier this year, The U.S. Department of Education (ED) met with advocates to discuss the possible repeal of the federal school discipline guidance. As a result of a suggestion received during the meeting, ED decided to hold listening sessions around the country to hear more from stakeholders. Following the Parkland, FL school shootings Ed […]
Category Archives: News
Official Launch- ESSA Engage for Equity Campaign & Toolkit
The Dignity in Schools Campaign, Partners for Each and Every Child, and the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. developed this toolkit to serve as a call to action and to empower parents, families, caregivers, students, and other community members with the information and tools they need to take action on ESSA in schools. This Toolkit provides resources […]
GCPS March Board Meeting
Our ED attended both sessions of Gwinnett’s March school board meetings. They were quite informative and eventful. Two staff members each committed a violation of the Open Meetings Act. They each held firm to violating even after it was explained to them. The 2pm work session included a breakout session with the Teachers Advisory […]
Disciplinary Action of Students Participating in Walkouts in Support of School Safety
Gwinnett County Public Schools (GCPS) issued a statement regarding student participation in the National School Walkout on March 14th. Gwinnett responded with its typical punish and pushout stance. You can read our response here. Some students are hesitant to participate in the walkout for fear of being overly punished. That’s where parents and adults come […]
President’s Day Candidate Forum – US House of Rep GA-7th District
On President’s Day, two Indivisible groups came together to host a non-partisan candidate forum for the all candidates running in the GA-7th district. Eight candidates have announced an intention to run – two Republicans – Incumbent Rob Woodall, and Shane Hazel; and 6 Democrats – Kathleen Allen, Carolyn Bourdeaux, Melissa Davis, David Kim, Ethan Pham […]
S.E.L.F. (Self-Determination, Empowerment, Love Freedom)
Toyasha Vaughn, 2014 Parent Leadership Institute graduate has been hard at work in Gwinnett County establishing an empowerment program for girls called S.E.L.F. (Self-Determination, Empowerment, Love Freedom). Ivy Preparatory Academy at Kirkwood, a gender-focused charter school, partnered with Toyasha to implement Professional Development Wednesday. She provided age-appropriate workshops with the entire student body focused on […]
Student Protest: Make Space For Civic Participation Without Fear Of Discipline
Today Gwinnett SToPP sent a letter to Gwinnett School Superintendent J. Alvin Wilbanks urging him to change the bell schedule to accommodate students wanting to engage in national protests around gun violence. The National School Walkout, takes place March 14th and specifically commemorates the 17 students killed last month in Parkland, Florida (the month 3 […]
ESSA Engage for Equity Campaign & Toolkit
Dignity in Schools Campaign members, NAACP Legal Defense Fund, and Partners for Each and Every Child launched the ESSA Engage for Equity campaign and pre-released its accompanying jointly developed Toolkit. The campaign is designed to empower students, parents and other stakeholders to hold conversations in their local school that can only positively impact education. This […]
Keep the Federal School Discipline Guidance!
Four years ago, the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights and the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division jointly issued guidance documents, reminding school districts of the law and giving them a road map to identify, avoid and remedy discriminatory disciplinary policies. We are very concerned the U.S. Dept. of Education, under the direction of […]
The School-to-Prison Pipeline: The Intersections of Students of Color with Disabilities
On Friday, December 8, 2017, the Dignity in Schools Campaign (DSC) and NAACP Legal Defense Fund (LDF) attended the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights (USCCR) briefing entitled, The School-to-Prison Pipeline: The Intersections of Students of Color with Disabilities. It is an independent, bipartisan, fact-finding federal agency charged with enhancing the development and enforcement of national […]