KCEN’s Emijah Smith demands Black Education Now!
By Julie-C
For Seattle area Education Advocate Emijah Smith, the start of school is a reminder of the work she claims still needs to be done.
Smith who is an education expert with King County Equity Now (KCEN) and a parent with a student in Seattle Public Schools points to what has for the most part been chronic and systemic failures of Black students in Seattle Public Schools over the past few decades as the core motivation for her work. Smith is the key driver of the Black Education Now! an initiative within the King County Equity Now Coalition.
Many in Seattle know some of the very big names in KCEN like Nikkita Oliver and Wyking Garrett but most outside of the Black community and those in the education ecosystem are just getting to know Smith who has been working on issues of educational justice for years and was actually a finalist for the Seattle School Board District VII seat last year.
In this interview, Emijah Smith outlines systemic issues that she sees in Seattle Public Schools, describes Black Education Now!, answers the question of why not defund Seattle Public Schools? Also gives some tips to parents and students struggling with online classes.
The Black Education Now! demands that Emijah Smith mentions in the interview are listed below in detail.
1. Community Schools Now!
We demand that the City of Seattle and Martin Luther King County cut funding from it’s criminal legal budget and relocate those funds to create Community Schools at every school serving 70% or more of students on free and reduced lunch. This funding for Community Schools must provide health care, eye care, social and emotional services. In addition these schools must provide and free, healthy, and culturally relevant meals. These services must be available before, during, and after school, and be provided year-round to the full community. This funding must also be allocated to a Community School Coordinator whose job is to facilitate the development and implementation of the community schools strategic plan in collaboration with school and parents/community members/partners, and to ensure alignment of solutions and needs.
2. Restorative Justice Now!
We demand that the City of Seattle and Martin Luther King County pay for a restorative justice counselor in every school and for the creation of a parent/youth/community restorative justice council for every school. The restorative justice council would be available to join peace circles to mediate conflicts in the school, review school discipline data, and help create strategic goals for community building and healing centered education. This council would facilitate a restorative process both between students and between students and educators.
3. Black Studies and Ethnic Studies Now!
We demand that the Seattle Public Schools, with financial support from the City of Seattle, fully fund Ethnic Studies—including a Black Studies course—to be rolled out in every school, Kindergarten through 12th grade. In addition, Financial Literacy and LifeSkills must be taught in our schools to empower BIPOC students. Black Studies and Ethnic Studies must become a graduation requirement.
4. Hire Black Teachers Now!
We demand that local colleges, Seattle Public Schools, and the office of the Washington State Superintendent for Public instruction convene a "Black Teachers Now" task force for the purpose of hiring and retaining more Black teachers. In addition, we demand that the City of Seattle and Martin Luther King County reallocate funds from legal system spending towards providing affordable housing for Black teachers.
5. Anti-racist Professional Development Now!
We demand that the Seattle Public Schools implement a robust anti-racist professional development course that all educators are required to attend, including teachers, admin, nurses, paraprofessionals, librarians, and office professionals. This course would not be a one time training, but instead provide ongoing trainings throughout the school year and throughout educators’ careers. This course should include antiracist historical lessons, pedagogical methodologies, assessment strategies, and identity self-exploration to learn how to effectively teach for Black lives. This training would also address the ways in which institutional racism and racialized anger bias leads educators to disproportionately call 911 on Black children and provide alternative strategies for healing centered de-escalation and community building.
6. Accountability Now!
We demand that educators, administrators, security, and staff that physically abuse a student must be held accountable. Too often, instances of abuse in the schools—especially when perpetrated against a Black student—have been covered up or not taken seriously. Any school staff reported to have physically abused a student should be suspended immediately pending an investigation. Should that investigation confirm the abuse, that person must be fired immediately. Any school district official who removes evidence of abuse from an educator or administrator’s file should also be fired.
7. Student Representation Now!
We demand that the Seattle School board add two high school student representatives to its board. In addition, the Seattle School Board needs to meet monthly with representatives from local youth organizations that serve BIPOC students such as, NAACP Youth Council, Africatown Center for Education & Innovation, African American Male Student Leadership Council, Black and Brown Minds Matter, United Better Thinking, Black Student Unions, and youth served in the Community Passageways and Creative Justice programs, among others.
8. Youth Achievement Center Now!
We demand that the City of Seattle and Martin Luther King County donate funds to support the creation of the Youth Achievement Center—a holistic co-housing complex that is designed to support homeless students, students historically underserved, and system involved youth. This co-housing facility would provide housing, culturally relevant food, freedom educational programming, tutoring services, mentoring classes, trauma counseling, college and career counseling, and other supports.
9. Community Control of Schools Now!
African American Academy and Horace Mann Building - Work with Black community to develop interventions and programs that specifically address the unique experiences of Black children. Fulfill the commitment to Africatown Center for Education & Innovation to return to Horace Mann to address the ongoing state of emergency for Black students in Seattle Public Schools. Restore African American Academy under community control to implement the necessary education solutions. Implement recommendations from African American Task Force, Equity Race Advisory Committee of Seattle Public School, African American Males Advisory Committee, etc.
10. Community Control of Education Resources and Levy Funds Now!
Community Control over resources that are supposed to impact our lives such as the Education Levy funds. Too often data about the state of emergency for the Black community is used to receive financial resources, yet the Black community is denied the funding to address the issues within the community. Too often, the resources are given to white-led organizations to lead the work with no improvements for decades. The Black community has the expertise, know-how, and the plan to serve its education and community needs. We demand control of our education resources.
