Gratitude to Valerie Jablow Education Town Hall and We Act Radio share our deep gratitude to Valerie Jablow for her six years of producing and co-hosting Education Town Hall. You can still find her education-related reporting at EducationDC. Welcome Dr. Marla Dean Beginning in September, Dr. Marla Dean, of Dean’s List Consulting, will be joining Education Town Hall as co-host and producer. The show’s host, Thomas Byrd, and We Act Radio are delighted to welcome Dr. Dean to the team. Marla Dean headshot Look for details, coming soon, on the next show, September 27 at noon Eastern. Image Descript ..read more

Students and staff of Black Swan Academy join the June Education Town Hall to discuss issues around policing in schools and efforts for police-free schools. Wednesday, June 28 at noon Eastern. Click through for “notify me ..read more

The next Education Town Hall, May 24 at noon Eastern, will focus on special education issues within DC’s publicly funded schools: Guests: Chioma Oruh: professor at the Georgetown University Center for Child and Human Development Nadia Roberts: founder and head of Don’t Back Down DC, a local grassroots special education advocacy organization Karla Reid-Witt: long-time education advocate and co-founder of Decoding Dyslexia Maria Blauer: director of programs and outreach at Advocates for Justice and Education Listen live on Facebook or YouTube — click through to “notify me” for reminde ..read more

PTO leaders from ward 7 & 8 DCPS schools join the Education Town Hall. Conversation focuses on their experiences as PTO leaders, what their schools are like, what the budget process for their schools has been, how other parents are involved, and what they wish for at their schools. Guests: Brandi Reese, officer of Garfield Elementary PTO Aja Moon, president of Burrville Elemetnary PTO Shakuwra Camphor, president of Houston Elementary PTO Amy Weedon, president of Eastern High School PTO Ciera Gibson, president of Hendley Elementary PTO ..read more

PTO leaders from ward 7 & 8 DCPS schools join the next Education Town Hall. Conversation will focus on their experiences as PTO leaders, what their schools are like, what the budget process for their schools has been, how other parents are involved, and what they wish for at their schools. Guests include: Brandi Reese, officer of Garfield Elementary PTO Aja Moon, president of Burrville Elemetnary PTO Shakuwra Camphor, president of Houston Elementary PTO Amy Weedon, president of Eastern High School PTO Broadcasting on We Act Radio’s Facebook and YouTube channels, live at noon ET on March 22 ..read more

On February 22, educators from DC and Virginia discuss attempts to revise how history is understood and taught in our publicly funded schools and what that means for their work as well as our understanding of Black history.  Here on YouTube — Also available on Facebook and on We Act Radio audio streaming Guests: Laura Fuchs: Social studies teacher, Woodson HS, who also served on a panel to advise the DC state board of education on updates to DC’s social studies standards.  Cosby Hunt, Director of Youth Programming, Center for Inspired Teaching; US History teacher at DCPS’s Theo ..read more

Special edition of The Education Town Hall: “We Love You Madly: the Past, Present and Future of Duke Ellington School of the Arts.” Discussion of educational equity and equality for DC’s only dual pre-professional arts and academic high school. Current students, alumni, faculty, and parents, and community members joined this wide-ranging discussion. School community argues that Duke Ellington requires funding for both the academics and the arts programming elements of their curriculum. Where other schools also get funding for “after-school” programming, Duke provides instruction until 6 p.m ..read more

Hear from three principals within DC Public Schools on the next Education Town Hall. Kristie Edwards, principal of Randle Highlands Elementary Charlette Butler-Strickland, principal of Hart Middle School Courtney Wilkerson, principal of Roosevelt High School and formerly principal of Sousa Middle School Live at noon, Eastern, on Wednesday, 1/18/23 on We Act Radio’s Facebook page or YouTube Live ..read more

The last show of 2022, 12/28, focused on students’ and teachers’ voices and issues of important in their own and other DC schools: Liv Birnstad, a senior at Capital City Public Charter School and a student rep on the DC state board of ed. China Jones-Burgess, a junior at Richard Wright Public Charter School and a student rep on the DC state board of ed (scheduled but unable to participate). Jacob Hodges and Robin McNeil, both juniors at Duke Ellington, who can speak about, among other things, that school and its existential struggle with DCPS at the moment (see Washington Infor ..read more

Updated with recording 1:10 p.m. ET 11/16/22 We’ll hear from Sam P. K. Collins, long-time Washington Informer journalist, and Carlene Reid, Ward 8 representative to State Board of Education, on November’s Education Town Hall. Both guests have a broad understanding of education, generally, and issues specific to East or the River. Airing Wednesday, November 16, at noon EASTERN, live on We Act Radio’s Facebook page and YouTube Channel. Topics will include shift in boundaries of Wards 7 and 8, which were once exclusively east of the river but now span the Anacostia, new “ElectED DC” coalition, s ..read more