State-Of-Black-Oregon-2015

POLICY ACTIONSEvery child should be able to attain an education and fulfilltheir dreams. We must focus on strategies to lift Black youthout of poverty, end school exclusion and foster respect forcultural identity.POLICY PRIORITIES:1Factor food, housing and parentalemployment into school-readiness4standards for Black youth.23Train and develop Black leaders,mentors and teachers and implementBlack leadership and mentorshipprograms for Black students inpredominantly non-Black schools andother public institutions, including thefoster care system.Set strong targets for hiring teachersof color.56End “zero-tolerance” discipline policiesand create a classroom atmospherewhere Black students are engaged andencouraged to participate.Develop education models that reflectthe lives and experiences of Black youthand train educators and other schoolstaff in culturally-responsive practices.Update criminal sentencing guidelinesfor Black youth to emphasizeaccountability, education, andemployment training, not incarceration.End mandatory minimum sentencing.“Never underestimate the power of dreamsand the influence of the human spirit. We areall the same in this notion: the potential forgreatness lives within each of us.”— Wilma Rudolph50