Advocating for Systemic Change
Developing and executing robust advocacy campaigns is at the heart of what we do. We know that meaningful progress can take many years and many steps, from initial research to organizing and mobilizing change. In 2018, based on the political landscape, as well as demand from parents, students, and educators, we spearheaded several campaigns on the issues most ripe for action. These included:
- supporting families and community leaders fighting for school performance transparency;
- rallying with the Solutions Not Suspensions coalition to reform school discipline;
- advocating for improvements to Minnesota Comprehensive Assessment administration;
- elevating equity in the debate over parent choice programs; and
- empowering policymakers to defend progress on teacher licensure, data disaggregation, and more.
In 2018, we helped Minnesotans send over 1,200 emails to policymakers to advocate for student-centered proposals.
By elevating new and diverse voices, educating legislators, and raising public awareness—through media outreach, our blog, and more—we helped ensure a robust debate at the Capitol, ultimately resulting in pro-student policy proposals.
However, education legislation got caught up in broader political debates and a series of gubernatorial vetoes. Fundamentally, although many solid education proposals reached Gov. Dayton’s desk, they never became law. Nonetheless, we are proud of the momentum—and bipartisan agreement—we helped foster in 2018. In 2019, we’ll pick up right where we left off.
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