CALL TO ACTION: If you are a student and need a Chromebook to start the new year, or a donor who has a Chromebook/laptop to share, please click on the button below and support our initiative to get a Chromebook in every students hands that needs one, so they can attend school on 8/24. Thank you!
An Education Initiative:
Under Free and Reduced Lunch (FRL) US Department of Education designation, African American students have historically been invisible and their learning needs continue to go unmet under the current policy. As a result, they experience INEQUITY in education at a higher rate in Nevada. Proficiency gaps reflect African American students in Nevada test in the bottom 25%, the lowest of any other racial group in the state. In spite of this statistic, some students achieve and go on to pursue their education and career goals and we applaud each of them, but Nevada can and should do better.
When we started this initiative to bring awareness to this group of students during the 2009 Nevada legislative session, little was being done to ensure equity for these students categorically. It seemed the system was caught in a time warp where it was still the opinion of decision makers that Black students only attended schools in the historical west side of Las Vegas. We've now identified schools where these students attend, collecting data, implementing strategies, and educating the community about the needs of this student population. With hard work and the dedication of CCBC members, education and community advocates and organizations, business community, local policy makers, state legislators, and then Nevada Governor Sandoval; the 2015 legislative session was a year of education reform and for the first time, categorical state funding was provided to students in poverty targeted to schools with high Black student populations in our most economically challenged schools with the creation of Victory Schools.
After the creation of ZOOM schools in 2013 targeted to schools with the highest student population of English as a second language learners, the CCBC approached the Nevada Department of Education voicing the injustice of inequity and inequality in Nevada schools for African American students. Over the course of a year, NDE and CCBC worked together to help identify the challenges of accessing an education and literacy proficiency. As a result, Victory schools was birthed during the 2015 legislative session. Early results were promising and offered unique strategies and best practices to address these challenges. At that time as much as 38% of the Victory school population were Black students. Unfortunately, in the 2019-2020 school year, Black students at Victory schools represented only 23% of the total school population as the Black student population declined to serving only 3856 students. Currently, 65% of the student population is Hispanic (10,684 students) with 30% English as a second language learners (5011 students) attending. Obviously, Victory schools was not the right strategy to address the racial disparity of students with widest proficiency gap long term.
In 2015 Read By Three legislation passed that required all students be tested for English proficiency. Those students that did not meet the standard were provided an individual plan that would get them to proficiency by the third grade. This was a big win for students who are native English speakers, yet struggle to attain proficiency. English mastery is not just a challenge for second language students and policy makers need to understand that they have a legal obligation to meet the needs of all students in the quest for literacy. It's our constitutional right.
Unfortunately, during the recent Legislative Special Session Read By Three was among Governor Sisolak's budget cuts along with our most impactful legislation yet, that helped African American students the most with much needed resources to achieve - the New Nevada Weighted Funding Plan (often referred to SB178). In 2017, the CCBC recommended to Senator Mo Denis a plan to address students least proficient in Nevada. With the recent passing of Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) requiring that every State Education Department make a priority of reducing proficiency gaps of any subgroup that demonstrated least proficient. We saw this as an opportunity to finally address the needs of the racial disparity in literacy. So, in 2017, CCBC suggested to the Senate Education Committee Chair, Senator Mo Denis the Legislature could support Nevada's ESSA Plan by providing funds to these students with the widest gap regardless of race or what school they attend. Senator Denis wanted to get away from categorical funding and instead have the dollars follow the child. We were extremely happy that he and his colleagues passed SB178, providing additional funds to ALL students in the lowest 25% proficiency rate. These funds followed the student with specific allowable interventions and accountability standards. These students were required to be on FRL or ELL and as a result of targeting our most in need students, and bringing them from under the shadow of FRL and acknowledged as needing additional resources, we were seeing wonderful academic growth among this student group. Recently, Nevada was named one of the top 3 fastest improving states in the Nation. That growth has come from rising the tide from the bottom up and reducing the proficiency gap, just as SB178 was intended.
Sadly, Nevada has taken a U-Turn and now we need more than ever, a legislature that will recognize the value these programs offered our most vulnerable. We don't believe they truly realize how their decision to cut SB178 and Read By Three will impact their constituency in neighborhoods around Clark County. 195,000 students lost their much needed funding at 217 schools throughout Nevada. These are working class families (with students on FRL), single households, transient families, couch surfers, ELL's, foster care students, and the homeless. It's students across our valley. The decision by Governor Sisolak to cut these life-lines for our students in the lowest 25% quartile of proficiency rate in the State is blow to education justice reforms in the State.
The proposed Plan was touted as "equitable" but when you look at the choices of programs to cut, it was not done through the lens of education equity and in fact raises serious questions of Nevada's commitment to education justice and the civil rights of African American students and those constitutional rights afforded every American. The cuts to SB178 eliminated literacy supports to almost 17,000 African American students, ALL in the lowest 25% proficiency rates in Nevada, while programs such as Victory schools was saved at a much higher cost per student, while serving only 3856 African American students. The programs Gov Sisolak and the Legislature saved resulted in the disproportionately under-serving of Black students at a much higher rate than any other racial group. This, we call a "funding inequity" and is specifically addressed in the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Civil Rights as a violation of Federal law. The intention to save 100% of Victory and ZOOM schools funding at the expense of SB178 and Read By Three resulted in propping up an already racially inequitable state budget. Students most impacted were African American and English as a Second Language Learners, both subgroups represent English language learners with the widest proficiency gap to fill. Over 26,000 students from these student groups lost English literacy funding as a result of cutting SB178. It's important to note, that many of the English as a Second Language Learners receiving SB178 funds and fall in the lowest 25% quartile proficiency speak many different languages, and without Title1 funds at many of these schools is the only significant resource they receive to address the needs of these students.
Many of these students are your neighbors or perhaps your own child. These students can't do it alone, they need our help to bring them once again from out of the shadows under a vague designation of FRL, and finally address the proficiency gaps created by broken policy and an education system where Black students disproportionately have no or limited access to the same educational opportunities as their non-Black peers, such as Magnet/CTA's, AP courses, G.A.T.E., CTE programs, advanced diplomas, and so much more. Will you join us and raise your voice in our fight for education justice and equity?
When we started this initiative to bring awareness to this group of students during the 2009 Nevada legislative session, little was being done to ensure equity for these students categorically. It seemed the system was caught in a time warp where it was still the opinion of decision makers that Black students only attended schools in the historical west side of Las Vegas. We've now identified schools where these students attend, collecting data, implementing strategies, and educating the community about the needs of this student population. With hard work and the dedication of CCBC members, education and community advocates and organizations, business community, local policy makers, state legislators, and then Nevada Governor Sandoval; the 2015 legislative session was a year of education reform and for the first time, categorical state funding was provided to students in poverty targeted to schools with high Black student populations in our most economically challenged schools with the creation of Victory Schools.
After the creation of ZOOM schools in 2013 targeted to schools with the highest student population of English as a second language learners, the CCBC approached the Nevada Department of Education voicing the injustice of inequity and inequality in Nevada schools for African American students. Over the course of a year, NDE and CCBC worked together to help identify the challenges of accessing an education and literacy proficiency. As a result, Victory schools was birthed during the 2015 legislative session. Early results were promising and offered unique strategies and best practices to address these challenges. At that time as much as 38% of the Victory school population were Black students. Unfortunately, in the 2019-2020 school year, Black students at Victory schools represented only 23% of the total school population as the Black student population declined to serving only 3856 students. Currently, 65% of the student population is Hispanic (10,684 students) with 30% English as a second language learners (5011 students) attending. Obviously, Victory schools was not the right strategy to address the racial disparity of students with widest proficiency gap long term.
In 2015 Read By Three legislation passed that required all students be tested for English proficiency. Those students that did not meet the standard were provided an individual plan that would get them to proficiency by the third grade. This was a big win for students who are native English speakers, yet struggle to attain proficiency. English mastery is not just a challenge for second language students and policy makers need to understand that they have a legal obligation to meet the needs of all students in the quest for literacy. It's our constitutional right.
Unfortunately, during the recent Legislative Special Session Read By Three was among Governor Sisolak's budget cuts along with our most impactful legislation yet, that helped African American students the most with much needed resources to achieve - the New Nevada Weighted Funding Plan (often referred to SB178). In 2017, the CCBC recommended to Senator Mo Denis a plan to address students least proficient in Nevada. With the recent passing of Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) requiring that every State Education Department make a priority of reducing proficiency gaps of any subgroup that demonstrated least proficient. We saw this as an opportunity to finally address the needs of the racial disparity in literacy. So, in 2017, CCBC suggested to the Senate Education Committee Chair, Senator Mo Denis the Legislature could support Nevada's ESSA Plan by providing funds to these students with the widest gap regardless of race or what school they attend. Senator Denis wanted to get away from categorical funding and instead have the dollars follow the child. We were extremely happy that he and his colleagues passed SB178, providing additional funds to ALL students in the lowest 25% proficiency rate. These funds followed the student with specific allowable interventions and accountability standards. These students were required to be on FRL or ELL and as a result of targeting our most in need students, and bringing them from under the shadow of FRL and acknowledged as needing additional resources, we were seeing wonderful academic growth among this student group. Recently, Nevada was named one of the top 3 fastest improving states in the Nation. That growth has come from rising the tide from the bottom up and reducing the proficiency gap, just as SB178 was intended.
Sadly, Nevada has taken a U-Turn and now we need more than ever, a legislature that will recognize the value these programs offered our most vulnerable. We don't believe they truly realize how their decision to cut SB178 and Read By Three will impact their constituency in neighborhoods around Clark County. 195,000 students lost their much needed funding at 217 schools throughout Nevada. These are working class families (with students on FRL), single households, transient families, couch surfers, ELL's, foster care students, and the homeless. It's students across our valley. The decision by Governor Sisolak to cut these life-lines for our students in the lowest 25% quartile of proficiency rate in the State is blow to education justice reforms in the State.
The proposed Plan was touted as "equitable" but when you look at the choices of programs to cut, it was not done through the lens of education equity and in fact raises serious questions of Nevada's commitment to education justice and the civil rights of African American students and those constitutional rights afforded every American. The cuts to SB178 eliminated literacy supports to almost 17,000 African American students, ALL in the lowest 25% proficiency rates in Nevada, while programs such as Victory schools was saved at a much higher cost per student, while serving only 3856 African American students. The programs Gov Sisolak and the Legislature saved resulted in the disproportionately under-serving of Black students at a much higher rate than any other racial group. This, we call a "funding inequity" and is specifically addressed in the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Civil Rights as a violation of Federal law. The intention to save 100% of Victory and ZOOM schools funding at the expense of SB178 and Read By Three resulted in propping up an already racially inequitable state budget. Students most impacted were African American and English as a Second Language Learners, both subgroups represent English language learners with the widest proficiency gap to fill. Over 26,000 students from these student groups lost English literacy funding as a result of cutting SB178. It's important to note, that many of the English as a Second Language Learners receiving SB178 funds and fall in the lowest 25% quartile proficiency speak many different languages, and without Title1 funds at many of these schools is the only significant resource they receive to address the needs of these students.
Many of these students are your neighbors or perhaps your own child. These students can't do it alone, they need our help to bring them once again from out of the shadows under a vague designation of FRL, and finally address the proficiency gaps created by broken policy and an education system where Black students disproportionately have no or limited access to the same educational opportunities as their non-Black peers, such as Magnet/CTA's, AP courses, G.A.T.E., CTE programs, advanced diplomas, and so much more. Will you join us and raise your voice in our fight for education justice and equity?
