"Defunding public schools is like taking gas out of a car and expecting it to move. Funding fuels public education." 

-Kalise Osula, Youth on Board alumna and Boston Community Leadership Academy class of 2015.

On Monday, April 10th, Youth on Board alumna Kalise Osula spoke alongside community leaders at a press conference held by Senator Sonia Chang Diaz regarding legislation she is sponsoring with the support of 80 state legislators.

The bill would update the 24-year old Foundation Budget that determines  how much funding local school systems receive from the state on a per-pupil basis.

According to data analyzed by the 2015 Foundation Budget Review Commission, through the current formula the state underestimates the costs of public K-12 education by up to $2 billion a year.

Read coverage in the Boston Herald here.

Five members of BSAC presented on each of their four subcommittees (Equity, Student Voice, Dismantling the School to Prison Pipeline, and Climate Justice) as part of their requirements to earn credit for BSAC as an elective course. This marks the 2nd years students have had the opportunity to receive credit for their leadership in BSAC and have it appear on their official transcript. 

The extended learning opportunity is made possible through the generous support of the Nellie Mae Education Foundation. Breakout pieces of the course, packaged as badges, will be available to members of the BSAC Steering Committee and beyond starting next year.

Fania Joseph, BSAC President and picture above, led a workshop on Dismantling the School to Prison Pipeline at Fenway High School during the BESJ Conference. The conference, sponsored by the Teachers' Activist Group, was planned with help from BSAC and sought to center youth voices. 

The workshop captured the experiences and perspectives of the participants which will be presented, along with the data from the Listening Project in October 2016, will be presented at BSAC's annual presentation to the School Committee on May 10th.