Rally To Support Community Partnership Schools

Description

RALLY TO SUPPORT COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIP SCHOOLS

Wear Red and Bring Signs!

Sarasota school district administrators recently sent an email to partners and supporters of Community Partnership Schools (CPS) stating that due to “leadership transition,” the district was cancelling its grant application for Gocio Elementary, a school largely consisting of students of color and poverty, to become Sarasota’s first CPS. This unfortunate action occurred even though the School Board had earlier voted unanimously to approve the application of this initiative widely supported by community organizations and nonprofits, including all major community foundations.
Sarasota Public Schools need Community Partnership Schools because:

• 50% of Sarasota’s elementary schools are Title 1 low-income schools
• Nearly 60% of Sarasota district students qualify for the federal free or reduced lunch program—an established marker of poverty
• 58% of Sarasota’s third graders are not proficient in reading

Community Partnership Schools:
• Create expanded learning opportunities for students, thus improving achievement
• Expand before & after school quality enrichment activities for students
• Utilize a trauma-informed approach that address the impact of poverty
• Provide vital onsite wraparound health and social services to students, families and community residents
• Turn schools into hubs with extensive parent/community participation

Let’s make sure that Sarasota School District reinstates its CPS application in July & commits to listening to community voices in support of district schools with large numbers of students of color and experiencing poverty.
Following the rally, participants are urged to offer public commentary on CPS at the 3:00 pm Sarasota School Board meeting.

Sponsored by Protect Our Public Schools (POPS), Manasota and League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), Sarasota