We were honored to attend The U.S. Department of Education's first inaugural Strengthening the Parent Sector for Education Equity meeting with Secretary of Education John King and former Secretary Arne Duncan in NYC. Co-CEO Veronica and RISE parent leader Diana from Aurora attended the meeting along with other practitioners from across the country. We are incredibly honored to be part of this national conversation and to represent CO at this important table and discussion.
We will be meeting virtually with this group of practitioners going forward to discuss best practices and how to move the needle in the parent sector to close the opportunity gap and achieve educational equity nationally. We're excited to share more about our work and learn from others in order to take our work to the next level in APS.
RISE Impact
Aurora Innovation Zone
We have been hosting workshops for Nepali, Burmese, and Somali refugee families with students at Aurora Central High School, Boston Elementary, Paris Elementary, and Crawford Elementary to educate them on the plans for the APS Innovation Zone being implemented in their schools for the 2016-2017 school year. As they continue working hard to ensure their children receive an excellent education, our families are looking forward to supporting the positive changes being proposed in the plans to help improve academic achievement in Aurora.
Strong Coalitions
Nepali families continue to come together to discuss the best ways to support their children's education. Families are exchanging great ideas and strategies to ensure students are successful, and academic achievement is improving.
New Partnerships
We've been excited and inspired as we have gotten to know more families who've attended RISE Family Learning Nights co-hosted in their children's schools. Many families are eager to get more involved with RISE, and have continued to attend RISE workshops to gain skills and strategies to support their children's learning. We look forward to continuing to get to know more fantastic families working to close the opportunity gap for Aurora kids!
Forbes 30 Under 30: Israel Summit
RISE's Co-CEOs were honored to attend the first international Forbes Under 30 Summit in Israel representing RISE and our work. Millie and Veronica were excited to meet leaders doing incredible work from all over the world. They also had the opportunity to travel around Israel with a group of Forbes Under 30 recipients thanks to the REALITY Under 30 leadership trip led by the Schusterman Foundation. We look forward to continuing to get to know other young innovators and entrepreneurs in the Forbes network passionate about educational equity as we work to grow RISE's impact.
RISE Colorado is Hiring!
We are excited to announce that we are growing our RISE team and family! We are working to find two dynamic individuals, a Program Specialist and a Spanish Bilingual Community Organizer, to join our team! RISE team members, Hari and Emily, had a great time kicking off the search at the Metro State University job fair. For more information about these opportunities and how to apply please visit our website: www.rise-colorado.org.
RISE In the News
This month parent leader, Diana Castro, was featured in:
English translation:
"I didn't know how to talk to teachers. I didn't know that I had the opportunity and the right to ask for help. I am a wife, I have two children, and I work full time, but I have to make time to be involved with my children's education because it is their future. I didn't have the chance to have an education and I want my children to have that opportunity. My advice to other parents is to get involved, ask the school how your children are doing, and ask for help from the teachers. They might not listen, but we have to speak."