Faculty, staff, school and district-level administrators, Board of Education members and community leaders from Mundelein, Round Lake and Wauconda will gather on Saturday, Feb. 4, from 8:45 to 11:30 am to address the achievement or opportunity gaps faced by students in their communities. Supported by a $48,000 grant from the National Education Association [NEA], the event will include a presentation about educational equity delivered by two Northwestern University faculty members who are experts in culturally sensitive STEM education.
According to MHS faculty member Andrew Hirshman, grant coordinator for the NEA, “Recent research in this area supports conceptualizing traditional achievement gaps more as opportunity gaps, which we plan on reducing.”
Following the presentation by the two NU professors, each community team will brainstorm three projects, ranging from community outreach work to projects dealing with instructional practices.
US Tenth District Congressman Brad Schneider and Illinois State Representative for the 59th District Carol Sente are serving as ex-officio members of the community coalitions.
“We are fortunate to have legislators who are so focused on issues of equity in education,” Hirshman explained. “Our coalition members will share lessons learned directly with both of them as they represent our communities in Springfield and Washington DC,” he said.
Schneider will attend and share his thoughts regarding the state of opportunity in education.