IDRA Classnotes

Classnotes Podcast (December 8, 2022). The 2021-22 session of the U.S. Supreme Court left on imprint on education through a number or rulings, including some that were not technically education cases. Paige Duggins-Clay, J.D., IDRA’s chief legal analyst, discusses what happened in the last term and what the court’s most recent decisions might mean for the future of educational equity. She also considers the face of the court with Justice Brown Jackson’s presence. In this episode, Paige is joined by IDRA policy communications strategist and form IDRA education policy fellow, Thomas Marshall III, M.Ed., as they

outline the big takeaways from the court’s rulings in Carson v Makin, Kennedy v Bremerton School District, New York State Rifle and Pistol Association Inc. v Bruen and Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health.

Show length: 29:32 min

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U.S. Supreme Court Overview – Cases Impacting Education in 2022, slide deck by Paige Duggins-Clay, J.D.

IDRA Files Amicus Brief in Fifth Circuit on Behalf of Student, Business and Higher Education Organizations in a Reckless Case Challenging Texas Tuition Laws – Injunction Could Cost Universities Millions, Reduce Funds for Academics and Supports for Texas Students, August 5, 2022

Supreme Court Should Reaffirm Diversity as Compelling Interest, Uphold Holistic College Admissions – IDRA Signs onto Amicus Brief Spotlighting Student Voices Urging the Court Not to Censor their Racial and Ethnic Identity in College Applications, August 4, 2022

Supreme Court Further Erodes Separation of Church and State in Public Schools – Public School Employees Should Not Elevate Any Faith Over Another, June 28, 2022

Supreme Court Allows Use of Public Funds for Religious Instruction, Giving License to State-Subsidized Discrimination, June 22, 2022

IDRA Amicus Brief in Fisher v. UT, November 5, 2015

We welcome your comments and questions to the podcast. Use IDRA’s online form, or send an e-mail to [email protected]. 

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The post The Law in Education – U.S. Supreme Court Update – Podcast Episode 231 appeared first on IDRA.

Classnotes Podcast (November 7, 2022). America is Me (AIM) is a framework that provides educators with curricular resources to promote students’ understanding of equity issues central to the development of U.S. history and contemporary society. These skills are transferable across academic content areas.

In this episode, Christie Goodman, APR, talks with the developers of the framework, Dr. Marlon C. James and Dr. Kelly N. Ferguson of Equality and Equity Group, LLC. They describe the framework’s origins and purpose and how teachers of all grades and content areas can integrate it into the standards they are focusing on. Dr. James and Dr. Ferguson designed a set of original classroom lessons that are featured on IDRA’s School Resource Hub – We All Belong. Christie Goodman, APR, is IDRA’s director of communications and worked with a team to launch this free classroom resource.

Show length: 28:47 min

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America is Me (AIM) Framework Flier

School Resource Hub – We All Belong

Advocacy News Against Classroom Censorship

What Texas’ Classroom Censorship Law Means for Students & Schools, IDRA

What Does Georgia’s House Bill 1084 Do? IDRA

CulturED Collection Lesson Series

We welcome your comments and questions to the podcast. Use IDRA’s online form, or send an e-mail to [email protected]. 

To ensure you don’t miss a single episode of IDRA Classnotes, subscribe to the podcast in iTunes, (download iTunes free if you don’t have it) or sign up to receive an e-mail alert as soon as a new show is published.

The post AIM Framework for Teaching Intercultural Skills – Podcast Episode 230 appeared first on IDRA.

Classnotes Podcast (October 26, 2022). On October 31, 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear two cases that have the potential to radically re-write the rules for colleges to seek and rely on information about students’ race, ethnicity, national origin, and other core identity factors in their admissions decisions. The cases, Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. President & Fellows of Harvard College (No. 19-2005) and Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. University of North Carolina (No. 21-2263) challenge the schools’ ability to fairly evaluate the qualifications and experience of college applicants and invite the court to depart from decades-old precedent establishing the value of diversity in education.

While the focus of the litigation has been on the university defendants, students and alumni across the country have been fighting to defend diversity in higher education – and beyond. In this episode in our series on the law in education, IDRA’s education law intern, Makiah Lyons, facilitates a deep and dynamic conversation with two students and alumni from Harvard and UNC who served as intervenors and amici in the case.

Itzel Vasquez-Rodríguez is a 2017 Harvard College graduate and is now a first-year graduate student in the master of public policy program with a focus on water policy at UCLA’s Luskin School of Public Affairs. Andrew Brennan attended the UNC at Chapel Hill and received a bachelor’s degree in political science and is currently pursuing a master’s in education policy and management at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. For this discussion, they were joined by Paige Duggins-Clay, J.D., and Taylor Dumpson, J.D.

Show length: 36:33 min

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Affirmative Action – The Law in Education, IDRA webpage with history and resources

Defend Diversity website

Amicus brief: Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. Harvard and UNC, August 1, 2022

Supreme Court Should Reaffirm Diversity as Compelling Interest, Uphold Holistic College Admissions, IDRA Statement, August 4, 2022

SCOTUS Blog: Students for Fair Admissions Inc. v. President & Fellows of Harvard College

SCOTUS Blog: Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. University of North Carolina

We welcome your comments and questions to the podcast. Use IDRA’s online form, or send an e-mail to [email protected]. 

To ensure you don’t miss a single episode of IDRA Classnotes, subscribe to the podcast in iTunes, (download iTunes free if you don’t have it) or sign up to receive an e-mail alert as soon as a new show is published.

The post The Law in Education – Students Press for Affirmative Action – Podcast Episode 229 appeared first on IDRA.

Classnotes Podcast (September 26, 2022). Digital literacy is a critical skill for engaging in our world today. It is much broader than knowing how to operate a computer or navigate a website. Christina Quintanilla-Muñoz, M.Ed., talks with Munirih Santiago Jester of the National Digital Inclusion Alliance about what it means to be a digital inclusive society that fosters innovation. Munirih cautions use of the term “digital native” for describing young people today can lead to the belief that we don’t need to teach them anything about using technology appropriately or being good digital citizens.

Christina Quintanilla-Muñoz, M.Ed., is IDRA’s research analyst and a former IDRA education policy fellow. Munirih Santiago Jester is programs manager for the National Digital Inclusion Alliance.

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Show length: 15:57 min.

Digital Inclusion 101, National Digital Inclusion Alliance

State Digital Equity Scorecard, National Digital Inclusion Alliance

Solving the Digital Divide Requires Authentic Family Engagement, by Thomas Marshall, IDRA Newsletter, April 2021

Plugged in, Tuned Out – A First Examination of Student Engagement Patterns in Texas Public Schools During COVID-19, by Christina Quintanilla-Muñoz, M.Ed.

How States Are Expanding Broadband Access, The Pew Charitable Trusts

Worst Connected Cities 2017. American Community Survey 1-Year Estimates, Table B28002, National Digital Inclusion Alliance

Digital Destination – Texas Needs Broadband Connectivity for All Students & Families, by Thomas Marshall III & Christina Quintanilla-Muñoz, M.Ed. (Ver versión en español)

Texas Needs an Equitable State Broadband Plan to Serve Students and Families, by Thomas Marshall, IDRA Newsletter, February 2021

Student Data Tracking – Taking a Closer Look at Privacy, by Mark Barnett, IDRA Newsletter

Your feedback

We welcome your comments and questions to the podcast. Send an e-mail to [email protected].

To ensure you don’t miss a single episode of IDRA Classnotes, subscribe to the podcast in iTunes, (download iTunes free if you don’t have it) or sign up to receive an e-mail alert as soon as a new show is published.

The post Even Digital Natives Need to Learn Digital Literacy – Podcast Episode 228 appeared first on IDRA.

Classnotes Podcast (August 29, 2022) IDRA’s shared family leadership process involves families joining in collaborative leadership, establishing connections with school, and developing and carrying out leadership projects to improve their schools. To get indepth, helpful information from an evaluation required using a multifaceted approach. Aurelio Montemayor and Nancy Chavkin wrote about their innovation in a chapter, “Harnessing the Power of Family Leadership for Immigrant Students” in a new book, A Place Called Home: School-University-Community Collaboration and the Immigrant Educational Experience, by Jack Leonard and Martin Reardon.

In this second of two episodes, Aurelio and Nancy describe the methods and specific focus of a large-scale evaluation of family engagement in a South Texas immigrant community. They discuss the big take-aways from the evaluation and what they learned from the participating families.

Aurelio M. Montemayor, M.Ed., is IDRA’s Family Engagement Coordinator. Nancy Chavkin, Ph.D., is Regents’ Professor and University Distinguished Professor Emerita of Social Work at Texas State

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A Place Called Home: School-University-Community Collaboration and the Immigrant Educational Experience, by Jack Leonard and Martin Reardon

IDRA Education CAFÉ Model

6 Principles for Family Leadership in Education – Infographic

IDRA EAC-South Family Engagement Web-based Technical Assistance Package

Liderazgo Familiar Intergeneracional: Intergenerational Family Leadership as a New Paradigm of Family Engagement, by Aurelio Montemayor  and Nancy Chavkin, for VUE Voices in Urban Education, September 2016

Community Groups and Parents Survey Peers about Graduation Policy (report)

RGV Equal Voice Network Education Working Group Hosts Second Annual Mesa Comunitaria

Your feedback

We welcome your comments and questions to the podcast. Send an e-mail to [email protected].

To ensure you don’t miss a single episode of IDRA Classnotes, subscribe to the podcast in iTunes, (download iTunes free if you don’t have it) or sign up to receive an e-mail alert as soon as a new show is published.

The post Evaluating Shared Family Leadership in Education – Part 2 – Podcast Episode 227 appeared first on IDRA.

Classnotes Podcast (August 17, 2022) Effective evaluation is critical to understanding more than just whether or not an initiative worked. It can provide insights into what makes it work and how success can be sustained. But evaluating family engagement efforts requires innovation. Aurelio Montemayor and Nancy Chavkin wrote about their innovation in a chapter, “Harnessing the Power of Family Leadership for Immigrant Students” in a new book, A Place Called Home: School-University-Community Collaboration and the Immigrant Educational Experience, by Jack Leonard and Martin Reardon.

In this first of two episodes, Aurelio and Nancy describe three key factors of IDRA’s family leadership in education work and why evaluation methods have to be different for collaborative community projects. They give specific examples of leadership projects led by families in South Texas.

Aurelio M. Montemayor, M.Ed., is IDRA’s Family Engagement Coordinator. Nancy Chavkin, Ph.D., is Regents’ Professor and University Distinguished Professor Emerita of Social Work at Texas State University.

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A Place Called Home: School-University-Community Collaboration and the Immigrant Educational Experience, by Jack Leonard and Martin Reardon

IDRA Education CAFÉ Model

6 Principles for Family Leadership in Education – Infographic

IDRA EAC-South Family Engagement Web-based Technical Assistance Package

Liderazgo Familiar Intergeneracional: Intergenerational Family Leadership as a New Paradigm of Family Engagement, by Aurelio Montemayor  and Nancy Chavkin, for VUE Voices in Urban Education, September 2016

Community Groups and Parents Survey Peers about Graduation Policy (report)

RGV Equal Voice Network Education Working Group Hosts Second Annual Mesa Comunitaria

Your feedback

We welcome your comments and questions to the podcast. Send an e-mail to [email protected].

To ensure you don’t miss a single episode of IDRA Classnotes, subscribe to the podcast in iTunes, (download iTunes free if you don’t have it) or sign up to receive an e-mail alert as soon as a new show is published.

The post Evaluating Shared Family Leadership in Education – Part 1 – Podcast Episode 226 appeared first on IDRA.

Classnotes Podcast (July 20, 2022). This year was the first time IDRA has had a team in Georgia to lead advocacy in its legislative session. They focused on key issues like school funding, culturally sustaining schooling and LGBTQ civil rights, that impact all Georgia students, but especially students in marginalized spaces.

In this episode, Mikayla Arciaga and Terrence Wilson sat down with Morgan Craven to reflect on the session, including what they learned about state-level education policymaking in Georgia. They described what it is like to be an advocate of color fighting for students of color in this state.

Morgan Craven, J.D., is the IDRA National Director of Policy, Advocacy and Community Engagement, Terrence Wilson, J.D., is the IDRA Director of Regional Policy & Community Engagement, and our Mikayla Arciaga, M.A.Ed., is an IDRA Education Policy Fellow.

Show length: 26:43 min

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Georgia Education Advocacy, webpage with highlights of IDRA’s work during the Georgia General Assembly session in early 2022

Georgia Education Policy Update: General Assembly Wrap  Up – Community voices were strong, April 8, 2022

IDRA Education Policy Fellows Program

Video of Mikayla’s testimony: Schools Should Value Student’s Lived Experiences, Not Censor Them – IDRA Testimony against HB 1084 in the Georgia General Assembly, presented by Mikayla Arciaga, M.A.Ed, to the House Education Academic Innovation Subcommittee, February 9, 2022

Video of Terrence testifying: Transgender Students Deserve Affirmation and Support Not Exclusion and Marginalization – IDRA Testimony against Senate Bill 435, submitted by Terrence Wilson, J.D., to the Georgia Senate Education and Youth Committee, February 9, 2022

Your feedback

We welcome your comments and questions to the podcast. Send an e-mail to [email protected].

To ensure you don’t miss a single episode of IDRA Classnotes, subscribe to the podcast in iTunes, (download iTunes free if you don’t have it) or sign up to receive an e-mail alert as soon as a new show is published.

The post Uniting Community Voices in Georgia Policymaking – Podcast Episode 225 appeared first on IDRA.

Classnotes Podcast (June 27, 2022). In one of those last-minute backdoor tricks, an amendment was slipped through the Texas Legislature without debate in 1975 setting off a chain of events that shoved a specific selection of children out of school. Immigrant children were suddenly excluded from education. In multiple school districts, with the help of advocates, brave parents took a stand, risking their own futures to secure their children’s.

IDRA provided extensive information for one of the first court cases dealing with the education of immigrant children in Texas, Plyler v Doe (1978). IDRA founder, Dr. José A. Cárdenas served as an expert witness for the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF) during the trial in Tyler, and IDRA’s retired director of policy, Dr. Albert Cortez, testified in the Houston and Dallas court cases that were consolidated to become the Plyler v. Doe case.

With 2022 being the 40th anniversary of the Plyler v Doe U.S. Supreme Court ruling, IDRA chief legal analyst, Paige Duggins-Clay, J.D., invited Dr. Cortez to a conversation about the ruling. In this episode that continues our series on the law in education, they discuss the history of the case, the plaintiffs, the arguments, and the impact of the U.S. Supreme Court ruling.

Show length: 47:01 min

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Video version of this interview: Plyler v Doe at 40 – Schooling Guaranteed for Immigrant Children

Plyler v. Doe Supports High-Quality Schools – U.S. Supreme Court Ruling 40 Years Ago Today Confirms Immigrant Students’ Rights to Attend Public Schools (IDRA eNews Alert) • (Español)

Plyler v Doe – The Law in Education, IDRA webpage with history and resources

Welcoming Immigrant Students in School infographic (English/Spanish)

IDRA “Education of Immigrant Children” web page with tools for schools and advocates:

Happy Birthday Plyler and DACA!

MALDEF Statement on Texas Governor’s Comments on Landmark Education Ruling, May 5, 2022

Plyler v. Doe – MALDEF in History

In Memoriam Judge Justice, IDRA

Your feedback

We welcome your comments and questions to the podcast. Send an e-mail to [email protected].

To ensure you don’t miss a single episode of IDRA Classnotes, subscribe to the podcast in iTunes, (download iTunes free if you don’t have it) or sign up to receive an e-mail alert as soon as a new show is published.

The post The Law in Education – Plyler v Doe – Podcast Episode 224 appeared first on IDRA.

Classnotes Podcast (May 16, 2022). The role of public education in the United States evolved since the founding mothers and fathers arranged for their own children’s learning. The progression and regression often is fueled by federal and state laws as well as major court cases. In this episode, Paige Duggins-Clay, J.D., and Morgan Craven, J.D., take a look at the Brown vs. Board of Education U.S. Supreme Court ruling on May 17, 1954, that is perhaps the most influential case the course of public education in this country. They give a picture of the landscape before the ruling, describe the plaintiffs and attorneys, and discuss the ruling’s impact. Paige is IDRA’s chief legal analyst, and Morgan is IDRA’s national director of policy, advocacy and community engagement.

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Show length: 23:44 min.

Brown v Board of Education – The Law in Education, IDRA webpage with background and context info about the case and what followed

A Promise to Fulfill the Legacy of Mendez & Brown, IDRA website

See IDRA’s eBook: 70 years of Brown v. Board of Education – Reflecting on a New Generation of Civil Rights in Education, by Chloe Latham Sikes, Ph.D., IDRA, May 2024 (PDF)

Six Generations of Civil Rights and Educational Equity, IDRA Infographic

Six Goals of Educational Equity, IDRA Infographic

Equal Access to a Quality Education – The Civil Rights Issue of Our Generation, Dr. María “Cuca” Robledo Montecel keynote, March 29, 2011

National Coalition on School Diversity

Your feedback

We welcome your comments and questions to the podcast. Send an e-mail to [email protected].

To ensure you don’t miss a single episode of IDRA Classnotes, subscribe to the podcast in iTunes, (download iTunes free if you don’t have it) or sign up to receive an e-mail alert as soon as a new show is published.

The post The Law in Education – Brown v Board of Ed – Podcast Episode 223 appeared first on IDRA.