Parents Protest Use of New School Funds in CA District – Under a new formula for public school funding, California is sending millions of additional dollars to districts with students who are in foster care, those learning English as a second language, and those from low-income families. Two of every three students in Kern High School District, in the southern Central Valley, fall within one of these categories. But a group of parents in the district and community organizations filed a legal complaint, arguing that the authorities did not consult them, and decided to use the funds for areas that would not specifically help students with the most need. Juan Santiago has the story.
Latina Moms in New York Seek to Increase Access to Schools – The Supreme Court prohibited school segregation in 1954, in the famous case Brown vs. the Board of Education. Sixty years later, a report found that the country’s public schools are still segregated, New York City schools more than any others. A group of mothers in Harlem and other parts of Upper Manhattan are seeking to increase options so that Latino families can send their children to better schools. Diana Montaño reports. This feature story is part of American Graduate, Let’s Make it Happen!, a public media initiative to address the drop out crisis, supported by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
