Coalition Update - March 25

Volume 36 | March 25, 2022

Coalition news & updates

Hello All,

I am looking forward to seeing you all in just a few weeks at the Witte Museum!

While I hoped that we would have good news (or news at all) from the Commissioner on ADA, it looks like we will have to wait longer to see what financial relief will be offered. We will continue to speak with our delegation, community leaders, and media about the impact that loss of attendance has had (and continues to have) on our schools.

Below you'll find additional information on the Spring Convening and a link to a new report out of the Rockefeller Foundation titled "Getting to and Sustaining the Next Normal" on the next phase for COVID-19.

Please let me know if you have any questions!

Julia

Spring Convening - April 5th

On April 5th from 1pm - 5pm we will gather at the Witte Museum's Prassel Auditorium for our Spring Convening.

Our goal will be to work on the first iteration of BCEC's Legislative Agenda for the 88th Legislative Session.

Please invite 2 or 3 members of your team to join us for the day (send me their names so I can get an accurate head court).

We will work through the legislative topics that have come up in my visits with each district so far, including: funding, accountability, teacher retention, and "other" which includes smaller topics like CTE, Broadband, Dual Language, and Board Governance. There will be time to add topics not covered.

At the end of the convening, legislators will join us for a legislative panel and discussion.

Getting to and Sustaining the Next Normal:

A Roadmap for Living with COVID

The Rockefeller Foundation released a report compiled by scientists, doctors, policy experts, public health experts from leading research institutions on how we can create the "next normal" for living with COVID.

There is a particularly interesting chapter titled "Schools and Childcare" and how schools should prioritize mitigation over isolation and how governments may incentivize vaccinations to keep communities safer.

While this left-leaning institution may not have as much resonance inside the Lone Star State, it does provide a solid source of research and policy recommendations on how we can strengthen communities for the "next normal."

Find the full report here. The "Schools and Childcare" chapter starts on page 122.