This Is a Perfect Time to Talk With Our Students About Social Injustice

The COVID-19 pandemic offers teachers a unique opportunity to capitalize on student empathy. Before the pandemic hit, millions of U.S. students were already in our…

Donald Trump Will Never Give Us the Smart, Nuanced Conversation We Need About Going Back to School

As COVID-19 wreaked havoc on the end of the 2019-2020 school year, parents and politicians nationwide sang the praises of teachers across the country—and it…

Here’s Why We Need Asian American History Right Now

I have a distinct memory of playing catch with my dad in a public park during middle school, when a stranger yelled at my dad,…

A Calendar, a Plan and Friends Can Make Unexpected School Closures Rewarding and Productive for Your Kids

Although only a handful of schools and districts have so far closed in the U.S. due to COVID-19, other countries—like Ireland and El Salvador—have closed their entire national school systems in an effort to slow the spread of the virus. If more states and districts here take that step, how can parents manage?…

Two Years Since Marjory Stoneman Douglas and State Legislatures Are Still Trying to Arm Teachers

It’s been just over two years since the tragedy at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School and I struggle to find an appropriate word to describe…

Fellow Black Parents, It’s Time to Break the Silence About Our Kids With Disabilities

My mom and society have taught me that it is rude to offer advice when no one asks for it. But Black folks aren’t talking about…

New York Talks a Big Game on Gifted and Talented Educational Opportunities, But Illinois Is Doing Equity Better

Attacks against private school options are frequent and fervent, but what happens when public school opportunities become the point of confliction? You may have seen…

Instead of Attacking Charter Schools, How About Y’all Work to Improve Traditional Schools?

It’s silent but deadly—and I’m not talking about heart disease. I’m talking about this assault on charter schools that has flown under the radar, is…

Coffee Break: Why Ramon Griffin Left Law to Change School Discipline

As a youth in Ford Heights, Illinois, Ramon Griffin grew up asking hard questions. Why did his ZIP code have so many schools on the…

First Day Jitters? Teachers Get Them Too!

As I embark on my 15th year in public education, I’m baffled that it still happens to me. After all, this is my 15th “first…