Parents: The Missing Engine Behind School Reform
Modesto E. Abety-Gutierrez, President of The Children's Trust (with the mic), along with other panel speakers, including (from left) Liz Looney, Service Manager with City Year Miami; Principal Pablo Ortiz with Miami Edison Senior High School; School Board member Raquel A. Regalado with Miami-Dade County Schools; Dr. Lenore Rodicio with Miami Dade College; Mc Nelly Torres with Florida Center for Investigative Reporting; and Lucie Tondreau, a parent and Haitian community advocate and Parent.
A series of first-ever forums brought front line education reformers and community media representatives together in Atlanta, Memphis, Miami and New Orleans. The consensus was clear: improving schools is a civil rights issue but will become a movement only when parents are fully involved -- and a movement in which media must play a more a compelling role.
“It’s a right for the children to have an education,” said Elise Evans, co-chair of Southern Avenue Middle Charter School in Memphis. “It’s a civil right.” Her demand was seconded by Marleine