You are listening to Speak-Up Arkansas with Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families. I am Rebecca Zimmermann. January 2020 will mark the fifth anniversary of LRSD’s takeover by the state following a State Board of Education action on January 28, 2015. That date is not just an anniversary. It marks the date that under state law the State Board must take action to “annex, consolidate, or reconstitute” the district if LRSD has failed to meet the “exit criteria” established by the Arkansas Department of Education. The State School Board recently announced a proposed framework for reconstituting the district that many parents, educators, and advocates fear will result in the segregation of students in the city and will fail to adopt proven approaches to education that help students thrive. Today we will talk about what has been happening in the district over the past several years, recent developments in the state’s takeover, and what students, schools, and the district need to be successful.
Today we are joined by:
- State Representative-Elect Denise Ennett
- Tim Jackson, a LRSD parent and organizer with Grassroots Arkansas
- Teresa Knapp Gordon, the President of the Little Rock Education Association
- Ali Noland, a LRSD parent
- Veronica Paulson, LRSD parent and part of the Support Our LRSD coalition
- And Leticia Reta, parent advocate