Washington state legislators checking their mail this holiday season will find a message from charter school students calling on them to keep their schools open, public and serving diverse communities.
Charter school students from around the state mailed hundreds of hand-written postcards to their representatives, calling on them to remember the important work in front of them when they return to session from the holiday break. A group of parents and students will also deliver cookies to legislative offices in the Seattle area, carrying the same message.
This effort to engage legislators is the latest in the parent- and student-led Act Now for Washington Students coalition, which emerged in response to the State Supreme Court’s decision that ruled the state’s voter-approved public charter schools unconstitutional.
Excel Public Charter School in Kent is on of nine charter schools in the state.
Act Now’s campaign will ramp-up in early 2016, with parents and students continuing to build awareness about the academic programs they are receiving, and encouraging legislators to take action to ensure that public charter schools stay open, according to a press release from Act Now.
Washington’s charter schools help close the equity gap through flexible, personalized and innovative academic programs specifically tailored to the needs of the diverse students they serve. For example, every student at Excel is simultaneously developing computer coding skills and learning to play an instrument in the school’s orchestra.
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