Holiday Wish/Work List

Yes, the end-of-year Holiday Wish List is cliché, but At the Schoolhouse Door and the NC Justice Center’s Education & Law Project are not above being cliché as we wish and work for a better education for all students in the state.

Here is our wish/work list (in no particular order):

  1. Public schools are adequately and equitably funded.
  2. Every at-risk four-year old who is eligible and applies for NC Pre-K is enrolled.
  3. The over-criminalization of student conduct is reduced through sensible discipline policies.
  4. More students receive positive behavioral intervention supports rather than suspensions.
  5. The state protects, defends and encourages traditional public schools and ends the privatization of public education.
  6. The level of academic success for all North Carolina students increases.
  7. All students, regardless of immigration status, are enrolled and registered in school without any barriers.
  8. All students who are English Language Learners receive all services they need to succeed in school.
  9. All special-needs children receive the services they need regardless of cost, and all students who have special needs are identified.
  10. Public charter schools become a complement to—rather than competition for—traditional public schools.
  11. Charter schools receive proper oversight and tighter accountability measures.
  12. Teachers receive the respect they have earned.
  13. Diversity is considered in every student assignment plan.
  14. The state ensures the first 2,000 days in a child’s life are successful.
  15. Parents have the opportunity to send their children to high-quality public schools.
  16. Every parent or guardian who needs legal representation to protect their children’s rights has access to dedicated attorneys and legal teams.
  17. High-stakes testing is eliminated in favor of a portfolio of student work that demonstrates he or she has mastered a subject over a period of time.
  18. The Common Core is helpful to North Carolina’s students, teachers and administrators.
  19. Parents receive all of the information and support they need to make their public schools successful.
  20. Public schools are not just seen as creating future workers in a global economy but as creating thoughtful, creative, compassionate world citizens.

That isn’t too much to ask, and the Education & Law Project will be working toward these goals every day in 2013. Please consider supporting the Justice Center with a year-end donation.

We wish you Happy Holidays and a Successful New Year!