The OTL Campaign's official blog

How to Measure the Well-Being of Our Children
Thursday July 26th, 2012

The 2012 version of the Annie E. Casey Foundation's annual "KIDS COUNT Data Book" provides a wealth of information about the well-being of our nation's children, including state-by-state data on educational opportunities, economic security, access to healthcare and family and community environments. The report illustrates the deep disparities between children of color and their White peers and between children from wealthy and low-income families in access to the opportunities and supports necessary to succeed in school and in life. Overall, the report finds that a higher percentage of students of color are living in poverty, not attending preschool, not graduating on time and don't have health insurance compared to non-Hispanic White children.

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MA Teens Organize for Voting Rights and Voice in Ed Policy
Wednesday July 25th, 2012

Youth advocates from Lowell, MA, are leading the charge to lower the voting age in municipal elections to 17 so that current students can have a say in the education policies affecting them. With a bill in committee at the State House and an outpouring of support from advocacy groups and policymakers across the state, members of the Vote 17 Lowell campaign are closer than any group every before to winning a voice for 17-year-olds in local politics.

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Education Redlining Webinar Recap and Resources!

Wednesday July 25th, 2012

In the National OTL Campaign's first webinar, we explored the issue of education redlining, in which bad policies systematically deny certain communities the educational resources and opportunities they need to prepare their children for success in school and in life. Attendees learned how to identify disparities in resources in their local schools with the help of a variety of tools, and we discussed strategies for bringing their research to the attention of the local media, policymakers and advocacy groups. 

 

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Students of Color Shut Out of Prestigious High School
Tuesday July 24th, 2012

In a clear case of education redlining, a much smaller percentage of students of color in Fairfax County, VA, are identified as gifted compared to their white peers, meaning fewer are given access to the advanced programs and resources necessary to gain admission to prestigious schools. In response, The Coalition of the Slience, a local advocacy group, and the Fairfax chapter of the NAACP have filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education. 

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Systemic Ed Reform is Key to Breaking Structural Inequality
Monday July 23rd, 2012

In difficult economic times, we as a nation need to provide all children, especially those in struggling communities, with access to the opportunities and resources they need to succeed in school and in life. In a CNN op-ed, Rev. Dr. Otis Moss III, Senior Pastor at Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago, points to the National Opportunity to Learn Campaign's "2020 Vision Roadmap: A Pre-K Through Postsecondary Blueprint for Educational Success " as the systemic approach we need to reform our nation's education system and combat structural inequities.

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