The Branch

The 86th Legislature convened on Tuesday, January 8 and all indications show that public education will be the main focus in both chambers. RootEd plans to make several trips to Austin to meet with legislators and testify on pertinent bills. We'd love for you to join us! Also, be sure to join our Legislative Updates Facebook Group for information about bills, committee hearings, and action items.

RootEd seeks to change the narrative by advocating on accountability.

RootEd supports legislation that:

• Evaluates schools as an instrument of individual student growth, rather than an instrument of punitive measures.

• Includes measures of student engagement, and parental or community involvement into accountability, in addition to test scores and college and career readiness.

• Discourages the use of assessment and accountability that adds more roadblocks to the success of economically disadvantaged populations.

RootEd seeks to change the culture by advocating on school finance and charter school regulations.

RootEd supports legislation that:

• Eases the competition between charter schools and public schools for the same funding.

• Increases the contribution from the state for public schools.

• Sets the same standards of regulation, transparency and equity for charter schools as the public schools.

• Prevents charter schools from expanding in areas that are over-saturated with high performing public schools.

• Allows for community input before the opening of a new charter school campus.

Ashley is the Churchill Cluster Representative. She currently has children that attend Coker Elementary and Eisenhower MS in NEISD. She has created innovative ways to create excitement and foster relationships between elementary schools and their feeder middle schools. Ashley says, "I'm proud to be RootEd in my neighborhood public schools! There's a lot of things I love about our schools, but what I love most is the dual language program. My husband is a native Spanish speaker and my degree is in Spanish. We still failed to teach our own kids Spanish! I am so grateful my kids have the opportunity to learn such a useful, lifelong skill through their schools. But I'm not just RootEd for my family. We have a choice where we send our kids to school, but not every family does. I'm RootEd because every child deserves a safe, enriching, and diverse education."

RootEd is a parent-led, grassroots organization that promotes neighborhood public schools through storytelling, advocacy, and education. We believe a strong public school system for all children creates a robust economy and well-connected community. RootEd is a 501(c)3 non profit organization.

Email: info@proudlyrooted.com
Website: www.proudlyrooted.com
Location: San Antonio, Texas
Phone: (210) 617-0824
Facebook: facebook.com/RootEdTexas
Twitter: @RootEdSA