LAE WRAPS UP STATEWIDE COMMUNITY CONVERSATIONS ON EDUCATION
LAE leaders recently hosted a series of meetings across the state where the association brought educators, parents, and community members together to discuss the needs of Louisiana’s public school students. These community conversations took place in Shreveport, Lafayette, Lake Charles, Morgan City, Monroe, Alexandria, Baton Rouge, LaPlace, and Bogalusa. During the meetings, attendees received a brief overview of the revamped federal K-12 public education polices set forth through the new Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). Participants then broke into groups to partake in collaborative conversations surrounding what schools need to ensure a better future for children, and shared their thoughts on what needs to be done in order to accomplish this. Each group presented its findings to the larger assembly.
LAE President Debbie Meaux emphasized how important the authentic feedback of rank-and-file community members, parents, and educators is to the ESSA’s success in Louisiana.
“Through working together, we are sure to experience positive educational outcomes for the children who live in our communities,” she emphasized. “We have a chance to get it right for our schools and our children, and we need to do everything we can to ensure that we are successful.”
Information gathered will be compiled into a report for the governor’s advisory council on ESSA. For more information on LAE’s involvement with the law’s enactment in Louisiana go to lae.org/essainla.
FROM THE PRESIDENT'S DESK
Debbie Meaux, President
The 2016-17 School Year has gotten off to a less-than-favorable start with many districts in the Southern region of the state dealing with impacts of the recent flooding. It comes as no surprise to see the incredible displays of strength and resolve that so many educators across the state have shown during this time – school communities welcoming (into their schools) faculty, staff, and students of campuses that took on water; educators helping the families of students who were impacted; families helping educators gut their homes; and school employees helping their colleagues, even if their own homes sustained damage. I think it goes without saying that I have tremendous pride for you - my colleagues across the state - who have shown an incomparable level of selflessness during this time of need – whether it’s been through physical or financial aid. School communities across the state have found special ways to reach out to those impacted so that our kids can maintain the most reasonable sense of routine during this time of rebuilding. Many of you who sustained great personal and professional loss, didn’t think twice about being there for your students in order to provide the standard of love, care, and stability that they are used to receiving. As an educator, you know it is the one place to which they can retreat in order to maintain a sense of normalcy. Your kindness and compassion is unprecedented and greatly appreciated.
The catastrophic flooding certainly has laid the groundwork for an uneasy outlook; however, this year, educators will hopefully be able to look past this challenge with hopeful optimism for the future of our schools as the ESSA (Every Student Succeeds Act) is now in effect. LAE members - along with thousands of education stakeholders across the nation - are taking on the task of determining what kind of educational plans need to be established in order to effectively propel our children successfully into their lives beyond school. Our association recently wrapped up a series of forums across the state where parents, educators, and community members took a deeper look at how we, as Louisianans, can craft an obtainable path to excellence. Under the new ESSA law, districts and states are charged with designing systems from the bottom up (not the other way around), which provides us with a unique opportunity to get it right for the school children of this state. The pathway to a successful future for all children - as outlined in ESSA - is to bring decision making back to the local level with mandated parent, community, and practitioner input. This new law gives us the chance to work on equity in our school districts across the state. The new regulations from the USDOE will require that new money coming into states via ESSA be used to supplement - not supplant - the funding that already exists, with an eye toward making sure that every public school student in the state is given, a fair and equal chance at a quality education. This means Louisiana will need to tackle inequities in funding, building quality, and distribution of school staff, so that all children are taught by qualified and certified educators in well-resourced, nurturing learning environments. If we take the appropriate actions, this stands to be an encouraging step in the right direction for our public education system here in Louisiana.
As we look forward to the next few months, we plan to explore legislation in the 2017 Legislative Session to begin the process of transition. Our major areas of focus will center around teacher preparation, reduction of unproductive testing, an increase in time to teach, and needed modifications to the teacher evaluation and accountability systems. Much needs to be done in order to ensure that ESSA is implemented properly in order to provide all kids with a quality, equitably-delivered education - LAE is at the forefront of making sure this happens.
In the coming months, I urge you to make a commitment to engage with association leaders and staff as we seek input on our advocacy efforts. It is our mission to establish – once and for all - a public school system that values the ideas and input of those who have dedicated their lives to the educational excellence of Louisiana’s future. Please visit our website www.lae.org and take advantage of the many resources which are housed there. Let us know how we can “up our game” in forging a new trail toward visible improvements in Louisiana’s public education system.
As always, thank you for being a member of this great association and more importantly, thank you for all you do every day for the children of Louisiana!
In Solidarity,
Debbie Meaux
LOUISIANA COMMUNITIES TAKE PART IN NATIONAL DAY OF ACTION AND “WALK-IN” TO SHOW SUPPORT FOR PUBLIC SCHOOLS
Louisiana parents, students, educators, and community members gathered at K-12 public schools across the state on October 6 as a display of community togetherness for public schools. The actions - referred to as Walk-Ins - aimed to shine a light on the needs of public schools and the students they serve. Major cities across Louisiana including Baldwin, Baton Rouge, Lafayette, Loreauville, Lutcher, Monroe, Shreveport, and St. Martinville joined thousands of communities nationwide for the day of action. The events were held to draw attention to important issues impacting the nation’s public education system including the need to focus on challenging curriculums that emphasize high-quality teaching rather than high-stakes testing, expanded offerings for student support services, and more opportunities for parents to get involved in their neighborhood schools’ planning and decision-making process.
Thank you to all LAE members who helped organize and participate in events in their communities.
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