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As of this writing (November 2014), 10 states have laws to enable 17-year olds to pre-register, or in some cases, to enable students to lead peer-to-peer, campus-based voter registration efforts. See here: Several states, including Connecticut, Iowa, Florida, Maine, Wisconsin, Missouri and Texas – now allow 17-year-olds to pre-register. In Hawaii, 16-year-olds may pre-register so that their voter status is automatically activated when they turn 18. Wisconsin, according to a report from New America Foundation, reaches out to young voters through a state law establishing at every high school a “registration deputy,” filled by a volunteering teacher or staff member. The article further discusses how it works in California: The statute also reiterates that the last two full weeks in the months of April and September – now known as “high school voter weeks” – be designated as “high school voter education weeks,” and it authorizes each school administrator to name one or more students as voter outreach coordinators to encourage student registration during that time. “We know that when young people experience the importance of voting and a culture of civic engagement in high school, they are much more likely to be active voters once they are eligible,” Secretary of State Debra Bowen said in a statement last week. “We also know peer-to-peer education is one of the most effective ways to develop students’ interest in democracy, and we’ve seen wonderful examples of it throughout the state.” Getting the word out to the state’s nearly 2,000 schools with grades 9 to 12, however, may be the more difficult task. And, even then, planning and coordinating a school-wide voter registration event takes a willing administrator and an active student council to see it through. If your state does NOT yet have a law like this, maybe it’s time to work toward one. The way to combat voter suppression and caging is to make sure we always have a new crop of freshly registered voters who are conversant in civics and understand all aspects of the democratic process. Additional resources and reports: Project Vote has great sample legislation, research, and recommended practices for putting into place high school voter registration programs. League of Women Voters has a comprehensive toolkit and high school voter registration training manual, current as of 2013. Fair Vote has an abundance of resources in general and a very interesting section on the ability of state-recognized parties to permit 17 year olds to participate in partisan primaries and caucuses.

Via the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction’s YouTube channel. Please see the rest of the important information on budget cuts and the harm they inflict on public schools at the link. Only a partial summary of the resources are listed here. This press conference was held November 10, 2011, at Monona Grove High School to address the issue. Speakers include: – State Superintendent Tony Evers – Superintendent Craig Gerlach, Monona Grove School District – School Board President Susan Fox, Monona Grove School District – Superintendent Jamie Benson, River Valley School District – Sue Howe, family and consumer education teacher, Monona Grove School District – Dana Kingsley, parent, Wisconsin Dells – Kemal Kirchmeier, student, Pardeeville High School Map showing loss of teacher jobs in Wisconsin: http://dpi.wi.gov/eis/pdf/wasdasurveyresults.pdf#page=5 News release: http://dpi.wi.gov/eis/pdf/dpinr2011_127.pdf WASDA Survey: http://dpi.wi.gov/eis/pdf/wasdasurvey.pdf WASDA Survey Results: http://dpi.wi.gov/eis/pdf/wasdasurveyresults.pdf Video produced by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction.

So far a number of Neighborhood Councils, maybe a dozen or more, have passed resolutions asking that iPad purchases be halted and the facilities bond fund money spent on repairs to schools as originally intended. Pacoima Neighborhood Council Education Committee, resolution passed on 10/4/14 Pacoima Neighborhood Council Education Committee Resolution: LAUSD School Board re John Deasy

Who are the millionaires and billionaires interested in opening legislatures and in some cases, buying school board seats with outrageously super-sized donations, in order to force unlimited charter schools on states? Our friends at Muckety have created a relationship map that shows who’s connected to who. They used as the basis of their map the 2010 effort in Washington State to pass a ballot initiative opening up the entire state to unlimited charter schools. Not surprisingly, Bill Gates, Steve Ballmer, and a number of other high-tech titans from within the state were the chief donors to that effort. But billionaires from around the country, like Eli Broad of California and Mayor Mike Bloomberg of New York City, were also contributors. //

See the clarification of what principals must do if approached by ICE and how any approach must go through the Superintendent: No Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers or other immigration law enforcement personnel shall be granted access to JCPS schools or facilities for the purpose of enforcing immigration laws unless: The Superintendent is notified of the intention to enter, with adequate notice so that the Superintendent can take steps to provide for the emotional and physical safety of students and staff; Those requesting to enter provide the Superintendent with credentials, the reasons for the requested entry, and written authorization, provided by law, for such entry; and The Superintendent determines, upon consultation, as appropriate, with District legal counsel, that the requested access should be granted. See also the inclusion of employees, contractors, volunteers, and representatives who are not allowed to inquire or report information about a student or his/her family’s immigration status. JCPS employees, contractors, volunteers, and representatives shall refrain from inquiring about a student’s, parent’s, or guardian’s immigration status. JCPS employees, contractors, volunteers, and representatives shall refrain from requiring any student, parent, or guardian to produce documentation regarding immigration status.

Note the court case that establishes precedent of public education provided to children regardless of immigration/citizenship status, Plyler v. Doe (1982). Note also the key “whereas” statements here regarding restrictions on ICE raids made in sensitive spaces: WHEREAS, ICE’s 2011 policy states that it will not conduct immigration enforcement activity at any sensitive location, which includes schools, without special permission by specific federal law enforcement officials unless exigent circumstances exist; and WHEREAS, there is no written state or federal law that mandates that local districts assist ICE in the enforcement of immigration laws; The 2011 ICE document referred to above is also attached to this wiki entry as is the PUSD “safe haven” resolution.

Note incorporation of “tolerance and acceptance over hate speech,” and  “allocating adequate resources necessary to support diversity, inclusion, and the values of a multicultural society.”

North Carolina has been the site of attempts by the billioniare oil barons, the Koch brothers, to end public education as we know it, and re-introduce segregation. Here’s what happened in Wake County, NC, in 2009: This Mother Jones article documents how conservative, right-wing forces like the Koch brothers’ Americans For Prosperity warped local school board races and distorted the outcomes by flooding them with money.

Presuming Incompetence: Decolonizing Epistemologies of Deficit Thinking by Rebeca Burciaga Email Message from local administrator: “Hi Rebeca, […] Do you know of anyone at SJSU who is an expert on Latino issues in education maybe in the area of decolonizing epistemology?” My thoughts as I read the email: I have known this school administrator for five years and I’ve discussed my work with her on this very topic, so why was she looking for someone else? Perhaps I need to be more clear. I have “this nagging preoccupation of not being good enough.” I decided not to respond to her email immediately because I was not sure if she did not remember our conversation, or because she presumed me incompetent and wanted to speak with someone else. I am becoming more accustomed to seeing surprise when I tell people I am a faculty member – their faces convey a clear message that I am not the one they are expecting. There are assumptions people make about what professors look like – I am not a White male. A must read. Here’s a condensed bio of Dr. Burciaga: Rebeca Burciaga is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Educational Leadership and a member of the Core Faculty for the Ed.D. in Educational Leadership in the Connie L. Lurie College of Education at San José State University. Dr. Burciaga’s research centers on understanding and challenging educational practices and structures that (re)produce social inequalities for historically marginalized communities, including/specifically Latino students.  Her research in schools and communities spans over 20 years and includes mixed-methods research on pathways from preschool to the professoriate, the experiences of students who leave high school before graduation, and the ways in which geographic regions structure inequalities. She specializes the study of qualitative research methodologies including testimonio and ethnography. Her current research and teaching is focused on cultivating asset-based mindsets in teachers and administrators that work with youth of color.  Dr. Burciaga is a co-founder and co-coordinator of the Institute for Teachers of Color Committed to Racial Justice. She has an undergraduate degree from the University of California at Santa Cruz, a master’s degree from the Harvard Graduate School of Education, and a Ph.D. in Education from the University of California at Los Angeles.  Her research has been supported and recognized by the Spencer Foundation, the Ford Foundation, the National Institute of Health, and the American Association of University Women. Her most recent scholarship can be found in Equity & Excellence in Education, the Association of Mexican American Educators Journal, and the Educational Administration Quarterly.