On June 18, UnidosUS hosted a town hall aimed at highlighting how distance learning has widened achievement and learning gaps between Latino children and their peers in the classroom.
Moderated by Nicole Suarez, Correspondent for Noticias Telemundo, with welcome remarks by UnidosUS President and CEO Janet Murguía, the town hall discussion included California State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond; CEO and co-founder of Latinos for Education Amanda Fernandez; and Oscar Romano, School Principal at YES Prep Gulfton.
One in four students in our country’s educational system is Latino, and there are five million English learners across the United States. These students were already facing additional barriers when it came to their learning, and now the disruptions are threatening to leave them further behind their peers.
This disruption, if not addressed, has the potential to become significant if there isn’t a plan to address their unique needs as we think about what re-opening schools will look like. Visit our Progressreport.co blog for the latest state and national education issues.
Be Counted and Take Action:
- Reach out to your Senators to ensure the HEROES Act passes in the Senate, providing the much-needed relief our community needs.
- If you are not already, register to vote here and participate in this year’s elections.
- You can make your voice heard by filling out the census as well, which you can do online, by phone, or by mail. For more information, visit Hazte Contar from our partners at Telemundo.
- Finally, consider supporting our Esperanza/Hope Fund to provide emergency assistance to our community.
We have also created a central hub on UnidosUS.org for COVID-19 information designed to keep Latinos informed. Visitors can find public health and safety information, lists of resources and services the community can access, and informative materials and graphics free to anyone that needs them. Also available is information on the policy priorities UnidosUS has been advocating for with Congress and policymakers to ensure relief that is more equitable, broad-reaching, and inclusive of Latinos. We would appreciate it if you shared this information with your networks.
