Newtown Allies for Change (NAFC) is pleased to announce Ariana Leggio, second-grade teacher at Middle Gate Elementary and Erika Carlson, Library Media Specialist at Hawley Elementary School, as the 3rd annual Allies in Education award winners. The awards were presented on May 30th at the Newtown Community Center. In April, NAFC asked educators, administrators, and… Continue reading NAFC Presents the Third Annual Allies in Education Award.
Tag: BOE
To Move Forward, Reflect then Vote
Two recent NAFC Blog articles highlighted the importance of remembering our past. In July, Carrie Grummons wrote about her family’s trip to Germany. She reflected upon how the United States deals with the ugly parts of our history in a vastly different way from how the Germans have dealt with theirs (Why Remembering Is Important… Continue reading To Move Forward, Reflect then Vote
Watching the Playbook Play Out
Well, here we are again. Another late-night Board of Education meeting in Newtown with more parents in attendance and more passionate speeches about the protection of First Amendment rights, the importance of representation in literature, and the ability to handle more mature material by high school aged students. I went into this meeting incredibly jaded,… Continue reading Watching the Playbook Play Out
Board of Education Public Participation Speech
Many members of our community often speak during the public participation portion of the town Board of Education meetings. Below is the speech written by Danielle Lozer about her family’s personal experience. My main reason for speaking today is to thank Dr. Correia, in public, for his willingness to confront the racism going on at… Continue reading Board of Education Public Participation Speech
Disrupting Ignorance
The following post was written by Konrad Miller, a member of NAFC. June 19th, 1865 (Juneteenth) is the date that the last slaves in Galveston, Texas were declared free by General Gordon Grainger. The signing of the Emancipation Proclamation was not regarded as consequential in Galveston in January of 1863. Black people were kept as… Continue reading Disrupting Ignorance
Examine Your Narrative
When Linda, a white woman from Newtown, CT, was sixteen years old she walked to the local mall and back with another teenaged girl from her neighborhood. On the way back, the young woman leaned over and said, “don’t look now, but there’s a Black man following us, and I think he wants to rape… Continue reading Examine Your Narrative
When Will You Care Enough?
The Newtown community needs to push through silly narratives about diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts as being divisive. Let those irrational narratives motivate you to work harder for the Newtown children who have and continue to bear entirely too much burden in our community.
What Joe Biden and Ronald Reagan Can Teach Newtown About Hiring Teachers
The nomination (and later confirmation) of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, the highly qualified judge who will soon be this country’s first Black woman to hold a seat on the Supreme Court, happened within the context of a lot of chatter. I won’t waste anyone’s time addressing the ridiculousness of “Do you think babies are racist?”… Continue reading What Joe Biden and Ronald Reagan Can Teach Newtown About Hiring Teachers
Superintendent Search in Newtown
The residents of Newtown, Connecticut ought to be very concerned with the way the school district is conducting the hiring process for the new superintendent. First of all, just like the hiring of the past three superintendents, the current members of the board are the only ones who will be a part of the interviewing… Continue reading Superintendent Search in Newtown