The colloquy will discuss themes addressed in the book, The Fight for America’s Schools: Grassroots Activism in Education, Barbara Ferman (ed) (2017, Harvard Education Press). The book tackles recent changes in the landscape of education policy that have prompted significant alterations in the politics of education. Collectively, No Child Left Behind, Race to the Top, the Common Core State Standards, and now the Every Student Succeeds Act have chipped away at the traditional center of community control—a trend reinforced by the charter movement, school closures, and state takeovers of some urban schools. At the same time, market-based reforms have sparked resistance from teachers, parents, students, and community groups. The book explores grassroots organizing campaigns in Philadelphia and its suburbs, Camden and Newark, and the state of New Jersey, describing the reconfiguration of historical alliances, the mobilization of new organizations, and the potential for new coalitions that provide a countervailing force to established political configurations and strive to preserve education as a public good. All of the speakers are contributors to the book.
Moderator: Toynessa Kennedy, Mills College (California)
Statewide Organizing Julia Sass Rubin, Rutgers University
Grassroots Activism in Philadelphia Elaine Simon, University of Pennsylvania
The Changed Landscape of Education Politics: Lessons from the Grassroots Barbara Ferman, Temple University
