HBCUs Testify Before Congress

HBCUs Testify Before Congress

By LAWT News Service

Wiley College President Herman Felton (UNCF photo)

Wiley College President Herman Felton (UNCF photo)

Tuesday, April 9, Herman Felton, Ph.D., president and CEO of Wiley College in Marshall, Texas, provided testimony before the House panel that decides the funding levels for all federal education programs.  The House Ap­propriations Committee’s Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Subcommittee received public witness testimony from only 24 individuals to inform their crafting of the upcoming bill to fund the government for fiscal year 2020.  The remarks provided by Dr. Felton focused on the funding and national benefits of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs).

A Marine Corps veteran and lifelong educator, Dr. Felton’s testimony was the first of the afternoon to receive bi-partisan support from both Subcommittee Chairwoman Rosa L. DeLauro (D-CT) and Ranking Member Tom J. Cole (R-OK).  The funding leaders commended Wiley College (a UNCF-member institution) and similar HBCUs, for their work with first-generation college students, specifically for being an integral part of the American higher education fabric for decades. Chairwoman DeLauro added, concerning the $39 billion National Institutes of Health (NIH), “We will be sure that the center of our discussion and debate will be that we strengthen HBCUs.”  Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA) who introduced Dr. Felton to the Subcommittee prior to his testimony, noted that funding recommendations in Dr. Felton’s testimony “just make sense.”

UNCF (United Negro College Fund) worked with Congress to garner the opportunity for HBCUs to be represented in today’s proceedings. Dr. Felton echoed the priorities laid out by UNCF’s president and CEO Dr. Michael L. Lomax during the organization’s inaugural “State of the HBCUs Address” on March 5, including:

  • Increase funding for the discretionary “Strengthening HBCUs” Program to $375 million ($93 million increase over FY 2019);
  • Reauthorize the mandatory “Strengthening HBCUs” Program this year;
  • Fund the HBCU Capital Finance Program, including support for the deferment authority;
  • Double the Pell Grant award and support Second Chance Pell; and
  • Support funding to produce more African American health professionals and researchers, including at NIH.

“What we witnessed today was history,” commented Lodriguez V. Murray, UNCF’s vice president for public policy and government affairs. “One of our HBCU member presidents delivered remarks about the needs of all HBCUs and their students, weaving in the history of Wiley College. The goals are clear: increase resources necessary for the Pell-eligible and first-generation college students who have found an HBCU education to be a necessity; and allot the funding necessary for HBCUs to continue to remain competitive and thrive.”

Murray concluded, “The reception Dr. Felton received at the hearing showed, once again, that when we take a positive proactive agenda to Capitol Hill, bipartisanship is the response.”

This article originally appeared in the Los Angeles Sentinel

SBOE ESSA Task Force to Explore New School Report Card

SBOE ESSA Task Force to Explore New School Report Card

Washington, DC – On Tuesday, December 11, the DC State Board of Education (SBOE) will hold its next Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) Task Force meeting at 6 pm in Room 1117 at 441 Fourth St. NW. Task Force members will convene to explore the new DC school report cards released today. Representatives from the Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE) will join the meeting to assist in navigating the site and respond to any questions that arise. 

Today, Mayor Muriel Bowser announced the launch of the first annual DC School Report Card and School Transparency and Reporting (STAR) Framework. The new interactive data-driven website provides students, families, and educators clear and detailed information to better understand how every DC public and public charter school is performing. DC families now have access to easy, clear, and meaningful information about schools in order to make the best decisions for their children. The State Board of Education and its ESSA Task Force worked with OSSE over the last year to bring parents and families together to help create the report cards.

Members of the public may attend and observe all task force meetings, but are not permitted to speak or participate during these sessions. Individuals and representatives of organizations may submit written testimony or information for consideration by the task force by emailing sboe@dc.gov. The task force meeting will be streamed live via Periscope for those community members who are unable to attend in person. For the latest updates on the task force’s work, please visit sboe.dc.gov/essa.

About the SBOE

The DC State Board of Education is an independent agency within the Government of the District of Columbia that advises the Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE), the District’s state education agency. The State Board is comprised of nine elected representatives, each representing their respective wards, with one member representing DC at large, and two appointed student representatives. The State Board approves statewide education policies and sets academic standards, while OSSE oversees education within the District and manages federal education funding. More information about the SBOE can be found at sboe.dc.gov.

Oakland 12th Grader Gema Quetzal Cardenas Appointed to State Board of Education

Oakland 12th Grader Gema Quetzal Cardenas Appointed to State Board of Education

Oakland Unified School District senior Gema Quetzal Cardenas has been sworn in as the sole student member of the State Board of Education.

“My goal is to make sure I represent students as they deserve, because sometimes students don’t feel represented. And I want to make sure they get the voice that they need,” she told a local TV station.

Quetzal Cardenas was accompanied by her mother, Karina Najera on Sept. 6 to the swearing in ceremony in Sacramento.

Najera seemed amazed that her daughter’s life has reached this point. “I was also scared. As we were walking here, I felt like she was my baby, like when she was little and started walking. So, this is a new step for her. And I know she’s ready. But as a parent, you always want to keep your baby at home,  and I’m just realizing right now that she’s ready for the world.”

The 17-year-old former OUSD Board of Education student member was appointed to the State Board by Governor Jerry Brown in March after an exhaustive application process that included hundreds of other student candidates.

“I’m just a proud East Oakland girl,” Quetzal Cardenas said just before taking the oath of office. She then explained her plans for her year on the Board.

“I really want to focus on curriculum because that’s something that students work with every day.

“You know, it’s something very important because curriculum can change, and it changes the students’ perspective on subjects and potentially their future careers.”

The State Board of Education is a formal body that may be unaccustomed to the kind of activism that is more emblematic of Oakland and OUSD.

Quetzal Cardenas is a prime example of a fearless advocate for what she believes. Her mother says the State Board may not know what’s in store for them with the addition of this “proud East Oakland girl.”

“I don’t think they’re ready for her. This morning, one of them approached her and said, ‘you know, make sure you speak up because some student members, they tend to stay quiet.’ And in my mind, I was like, ‘I don’t think you’re ready for her…’ I don’t think that California is ready for this new member.”

Quetzal Cardenas is receiving internship hours for her service on the state board, all while maintaining a 4.1 GPA. After graduation, she hopes to attend Columbia University in New York City and eventually run for public office.

This article originally appeared in The Oakland Post.

Protecting Our Community during National Foster Care Month

Protecting Our Community during National Foster Care Month

By Congresswoman Karen Bass (D-Calif.)

In the late 1980s and early 1990s, our community was under a full-fledged attack. Crack was in our streets, it was in our schools, it was in our parks, it was in our playgrounds, and for some, it was in our homes. The epidemic wasn’t just affecting one part of the community; this impacted the entire community, leaving sons without fathers, daughters without mothers, and parents, ultimately, alone.

But the carnage didn’t stop there. Policies enacted during the crack epidemic exacerbated the destruction. Children in South Los Angeles were ripped away from their parents and shipped off into the child welfare system, some to never see their parents, or their families, again. It was at the height of the crack epidemic when the number of kids in foster care exploded and the percentage of Black youth in the system skyrocketed.

Now, the country, not just our community, faces a new epidemic. Our child welfare system is already becoming increasingly populated due to the consequences of the opioid epidemic. The current crisis is starting to devastate families and our already over-worked and under-resourced child welfare system. This time, we must apply the lessons learned from the crack epidemic: if you want successful policy, you must include the affected communities in the formulation of new policy. We cannot afford to turn our backs on those impacted again.

At the end of this month, the Congressional Caucus on Foster Youth will host its 7th annual Foster Youth Shadow Day, a program that brings foster youth from all over the country to meet and shadow the very Members of Congress who represent them in Washington, D.C.

No one knows more about the pitfalls of our nation’s child welfare system than those who grew up in it. These young people are travelling thousands of miles to come to D.C. to share their stories—both their challenges with abuse, trafficking, overmedication, or homelessness—as well as their successes with mentorship, adoption, family reunification, community activism and independent living.

The result of these visits is a better understanding of how to improve the child welfare system and fight against this epidemic. The FY 2018 omnibus bill that was passed earlier this year had the single biggest increase in investment in child welfare funding history along with a large investment in funds to combat the opioid crisis. Despite this progress, there will always be more work to be done and this month, I look forward to continuing this fight. National Foster Care Month is a month to honor the successes and challenges of the more than 400,000 foster youth across the country and to acknowledge the tireless efforts of those who work to improve outcomes for children in the child welfare system.

Making sure that all children have a permanent and loving home is not a Democrat or Republican issue – it should be an American priority. Our society is judged on how we treat the most vulnerable amongst us. We must invest in life improving foster care services, praise foster families, caregivers, and relatives for their selflessness to others, and continue to provide a hand up so that foster youth can realize their full potential.

Congresswoman Karen Bass represents California’s 37th Congressional District. She is the 2nd Vice Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus and the co-chair of the Congressional Caucus on Foster Youth. Follow her on Twitter at @RepKarenBass.