My husband, sons, and I attended the Washington Township Parent Council Network (PCN) meeting on Wednesday evening. I hadn’t attended one of those in person since before the pandemic. PCN is an outside organization that seems to have insider access to district leaders and officials. I selectively attend their meetings when there are issues that…
It’s Banned Books Week. Exactly as the name implies, during this week people all over the country highlight banned texts and the conversations around them. The week was launched in 1982 but has become more culturally relevant as of late due to the recent efforts by some to ban certain books in schools. The US…
Last week, IPS released its Rebuilding Stronger Proposal to the community. WFYI reporter Eric Weddle shared highlights of the plan in the article “IPS would close 7 schools under expansive restructure proposal.” I encourage readers to read his thorough article. Weddle shared that the proposal includes: Closing seven elementary school buildings next summer, including three…
Schools are going to pay substitute teachers more but that alone wont solve the problem.
As a former English teacher and school librarian, my favorite week of the school year was Banned Books Week. I made it a point to incorporate it into my lesson plans, not because I wanted to force students to read banned books but because I wanted them to be aware of why censorship is an…
It’s Hispanic Heritiage & Awareness Month ! As I acknowledge, educate, and embrace this culture, I want public schools to do more. I want public schools to stop doing what we do best when it comes to cultural awareness months which is celebrate with foods and dance. I want us to actually teach, embrace, and…
At the beginning of the school year, the English language learner (ELL) teacher reviews the home language survey. If parents note that another language is spoken at home, the student might receive English language learner services. This also means there is a chance the parents do not speak English. As the ELL population continues to…
The role of Assistant Principals is rewarding, but it’s a hard road. Trust me; I know. As a former school administrator who handled discipline, the job is beneficial to parents and students when the school and district have adopted a restorative justice driven behavior and discipline model. Unfortunately, many of public school districts don’t invest…
What is your school’s plan for a fight?
Welcome to the EduVerse with ProfessorJBA. Here’s what I want to say to parents and parent/family advocates. Your voices matter, and we need you. Advocacy isn’t easy work, so thank you for everything you’re doing on behalf of children. As an advocate for families and children, I know the barriers parent advocates face. One common…