Above: Lupe Navarro (back row, third from left) with her fellow statewide student leaders in Californians for Justice. Last…
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Students and Parents Speak: OUSD strike should be red flag for all school districts in CA
The following piece was originally published as an Open Forum in the San Francisco Chronicle online on March 6, 2019. By Belize Gonden-Cruz and Zaineb Alomari There is a crisis in Oakland Unified School District — educators are leaving our classrooms at an alarming rate. Each year, we lose more than 300 teachers from Oakland schools. At…
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Time for Radical Revision of what Public Education Can Look Like for Black Students & Families
Black History Month offers an important time to examine issues of racial justice in communities and our education system. When public education was dreamed up by its founders, Horace Mann and Thomas Jefferson, neither person envisioned Black students attending integrated schools. That much is evident when we look at the history of schooling in America…
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Check Us Out: Faces of CFJ
Californians for Justice has grown greatly over the last two decades. From our start in Oakland in the late ‘90s organizing students and community to confront racial bias in our education system, to today’s campaigns calling for full funding of our public schools. We’ve never stopped organizing and evolving, listening to our communities and lifting…
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CFJ mobilizing Oakland Unified students and parents
Last week, Californians for Justice staff and student leaders in Oakland organized our community to lift up their voice and call for district and education leaders to protect students and protect our schools! We hosted a joint press conference with Oakland Community Organizations and Public Advocates to show that our students and families are clear:…
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Working to Build Relationships Not Walls in Fresno Unified
Over the last few years student leaders from Californians for Justice have had the privilege of working closely with Fresno Unified Superintendent Bob Nelson and the school board to develop Relationship Centered Schools within the district. This work is a reflection of our school leaders and elected officials recognizing the value of student voice, relationship…
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The #UTLAStrike and The Soul of Public Education
This week’s strike by United Teachers Los Angeles has been described by organizers as a “fight for the soul of public education,” and we agree. The stakes are high in 2019 as teachers in Los Angeles and Oakland Unified amplify calls for reduced class sizes, decreased dependence on standardized testing, and higher wages for staff.…
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Check Us Out: CFJ Youth Leading School Safety Conversations Locally & Nationwide
Californians for Justice is working across three levels of government to improve school climate, school safety, and student and family engagement. Building Relationships in Long Beach On November 30th, CFJ hosted a series of teacher luncheons in partnership with Long Beach Unified School District. Youth leaders and staff learned more about what Relationship Centered Schools…
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How Relationship-building on Campus Leads to Stronger Schools in LBC
It has been a whirlwind few weeks at Californians for Justice as youth leaders and staff presented on Relationship Centered Schools work to teachers at Cabrillo and Lakewood high schools. The luncheons included an overview of the work in the district so far as well as interactive questions, relationship building and delicious food. Over 60…
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Communities across CA mobilizing in solidarity with Asylum Seekers
While the violence experienced by children, families and young people at the California border may have slipped from the news cycle, it’s important to remember that our government continues to attack and vilify this community. The violence these asylum seekers are fleeing from is directly linked to U.S. intervention in Central America, and yet our…
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