Press Release – ALBEMARLE-CHARLOTTESVILLE NAACP – EDUCATION COMMITTEE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

December 6, 2023

Contact: Corlis Anderson; ctanderson54@gmail.com

Local NAACP Branch Calls for Safe Learning Environment & Equitable Resources in Charlottesville City Schools

In response to the recent events at Charlottesville High School,

the Albemarle-Charlottesville Branch #7057 of the NAACP releases the following statement:

Every child deserves an opportunity to reach their full potential. To bridge academic gaps and ensure that all children get a real chance at a fulfilling education, we need to address systemic racism and poverty as tangible barriers to learning and future achievement. Every Black student deserves access to great teaching, equitable resources, and a safe learning environment from grade school classrooms to college campuses. Black students matter, and working on their behalf has never been more urgent.

Students need family and community engagement and resources that encourage physical and mental health for their overall well-being, which allows for stronger academic development. We support students getting the education and skills development they need, so they can be successful on the job or in an academic environment.

We need strategies and investments that build accountability to advance the success of children of color. Black children deserve to experience culturally relevant, student-centered learning and appropriate discipline measures. Our goal is to work to expand policies and interventions that equip families and communities to better support their kids’ needs in school.

Furthermore, in compliance with NAACP policy, we:

  • Advocate for reforms to include issues of discipline in the Elementary & Secondary Education Act (ESEA), the main federal law that addresses achievement gaps among students.
  • Work to change state laws to remove zero tolerance policies from being a default or requirement for districts.
  • Advocate at district level for policies that do not remove students from school and ensure that  students being disciplined get access to a challenging curriculum.

EDUCATION COMMITTEE

ALBEMARLE-CHARLOTTESVILLE NAACP BRANCH 7057