A year and a day | JD2718

A year and a day | JD2718

A year and a day

Yesterday people wrote meaningful remembrances.

Today I am asking: What’s changed?

One conviction. Almost a thousand more people killed by cops. Police still lying about deaths in custody.

After a few months of outrage and protest – what’s changed?

Why are armed, uniformed police still in charge of traffic stops?

Why are armed, uniformed police still in charge of dealing with the mentally ill?

Why has there been no discernible change in policing?

There is certainly more awareness today, among white people, that police treat Black people differently.

But after that horrible video (and how many other videos?), after those massive protests, after those demands for real change – shouldn’t we have done more than raise awareness?

Oh, that change is still needed, desperately.

I’m glad to see Trump gone from the White House, but that’s not the change I’m talking about. And that change, having a new president, is that going to change policing? Of course, of course, I know lots of CONTINUE READING: A year and a day | JD2718

Covid-19 changed education in America — permanently - POLITICO

Covid-19 changed education in America — permanently - POLITICO

Covid-19 changed education in America — permanently

It’s been a school year like no other. Here’s what we learned.

There was a moment last spring when every parent and employer in America suddenly realized how deeply their lives and livelihoods depended on an institution too often in the background and taken for granted: the nation’s schools.

With almost no notice, adults and children found themselves in the middle of a massive national experiment in new ways of teaching and learning, and new ways of dividing responsibilities between home, school and work.

A year later, it’s clear that the Covid-19 pandemic has changed education in America in lasting ways, and glimpses of that transformed system are already emerging. School districts are developing permanent virtual options in the expectation that after the pandemic, some families will stick with remote learning — even for elementary school kids. Hundreds of colleges have, for the first time, admitted a freshman class without requiring SAT or ACT scores, potentially opening admissions to the most selective colleges to more low-income students. And thousands of educators across the country, from preschool to college, are finding new ways to spark their students’ creativity, harness technology and provide the services they need to succeed.

The pandemic has unleashed a wave of innovation in education that has accelerated change and prompted blue-sky thinking throughout the system. What if more schools could enhance learning and nutrition by offering their students not just a free breakfast and lunch, but dinner and a snack? What if schools delivered books during the summer? What if high school art students had access to graphic design and architecture software?

It’s not all upside, of course; the pandemic has been a tragedy for many CONTINUE READING: Covid-19 changed education in America — permanently - POLITICO

BE THE CHANGE – Dad Gone Wild

BE THE CHANGE – Dad Gone Wild

BE THE CHANGE

“If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more, and become more, you are a leader.”

― John Quincy Adams

This week marks the beginning of the end of the election season. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic crisis, more people voted via absentee ballot than ever before, and as a by-product, we are still waiting for results in the race for the presidency.

Overnight, former vice president Joe Biden surpassed Trump in both Georgia and Pennsylvania. I suspect that by the end of the day he will be declared the victor and we’ll have a new president-elect.

For many reasons, that is cause for celebration. Donald Trump should have never been elected president, and the fact that he was speaks to the deep divisions and the increased marginalization of people in this country. On one hand, it’s exciting that Joe Biden received more votes than any other presidential candidate in the history of the United States. However, we can’t lose sight of the fact that Donald Trump received more votes than any other Republican candidate in the history of the United States.

No matter how you slice it, this election reveals a deeply divided country. Half of the population has no understanding of how the other half lives and thinks, nor are they interested in knowing. Not every one of the people who voted for Donald Trump is a heartless, ignorant racist. Not everyone who cast a vote for Biden is a socialist, elitist, looking for free stuff. Some of the most amazing human beings I know are members of both sides. Neither side holds exclusivity on ignorance and a false sense of superiority, just as neither holds it for generosity and kindness either.

My hope is that with the noise from the Oval Office eliminated, some of the animosity will recede and people will actually talk to each other, instead of just shouting and dismissing. Maybe we’ll CONTINUE READING: BE THE CHANGE – Dad Gone Wild