Shavar Jeffries: Kids Win in Washington State

The following post was originally published on The Huffington Post: By Shavar Jeffries, National President of Democrats for Education Reform To say that it has been a tumultuous year for Washington State’s public charter schools – and for their students and families – would be an understatement. This past September, just as the school year was

DFER-WA on SB 6194 Becoming Law, Saving Washington’s Public Charter Schools

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE DFER-WA on SB 6194 Becoming Law, Saving Washington’s Public Charter Schools SEATTLE, WA — Washington State’s landmark public charter legislation will pass into law, despite Governor Jay Inslee’s decision to forgo signing the bill. This is an important moment for Washington’s 1,100 public charter school students, whose educational futures are now back

Shavar Jeffries on Opinion Journal: Washington State Charter Setback

DFER National President Shavar Jeffries joined Mary Kissel of the Wall Street Journal‘s Editorial Board to discuss the recent Washington State Supreme Court ruling on charter schools:  

Getting Comfortable with Being Uncomfortable

By Lisa Macfarlane, DFER-WA State Director This is the time for Democrats in Washington state to stand tall and show that we care about equity and opportunity. This is the time to get comfortable with being uncomfortable. Democrats in The Evergreen State are at an important crossroads. We have been steadily losing seats in the

What Century Are We In?

By Lisa Macfarlane, DFER-WA State Director Last Friday, the Washington Supreme Court issued a shocking decision that hurts our most vulnerable students and dashes the hopes of families across the state whose children have just started in brand new public charter schools. On the eve of a holiday weekend, almost a year after oral arguments

DFER-WA Statement on Washington State Supreme Court Ruling on Public Charter Schools

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE DFER-WA Statement on Washington State Supreme Court Ruling on Public Charter Schools SEATTLE, WA — Today, Democrats for Education Reform Washington (DFER-WA) State Director Lisa Macfarlane released the following statement: “Late yesterday, the Washington Supreme Court issued a decision that creates chaos and uncertainty for families across the state and hurts students

This New Orleans Museum Shows the Horrors of Slavery Through the Eyes of Children

By Lisa Macfarlane, DFER Washington State Director Thirty-nine miles from New Orleans, there is a remarkable place known as Whitney Plantation. Of the thousands of tourists and conventioneers who spend time in New Orleans scarfing up beignets, soaking up great jazz and blues, and consuming generous quantities of alcohol, few know of its existence and significant

We Are Better Than This

By Lisa Macfarlane, Washington State Director Driving home on Monday, I heard on NPR that Kalief Browder, the young man from Brooklyn who spent three years on Rikers Island — two of them in solitary confinement — while waiting for a trial that never happened, had committed suicide over the weekend. I burst into tears.

Seriously?!

If you think Washington could not become another Wisconsin, think again. Blue states turn purple. Then they turn red. Our Democrats should be worried about 2016. But first they need to get their heads out of the sand, and get serious about improving our public schools. At the very time when the voting public in

No Struggle, No Progress

Please join us for an evening with Dr. Howard Fuller as he tells the story of his civil rights work and journey from empowering poor, black communities in North Carolina to being on the forefront of education reform in America.  Tuesday, February 10th 2015 6:30PM University of Washington Tacoma – William W. Philip Hall 1918