Rio Texas Methodist Federation for Social Action

Saturday, October 7 – The TX Health & Human Services Center for Elimination of Disproportionality & Disparities hosts: First Saturday’s Courageous Conversations on Race

“Courageous Conversation” the first Saturday of each month fosters dialogue among people throughout the community to develop better understanding and to dispel stereotypes. St. James Episcopal Church Founder’s Hall, 1941 Webberville Rd., 9 -11:30.  Town Hall meeting from 1:30 – 4:00pm.

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Breaking Schools’ Rules: A Statewide Study of How School Discipline Relates to Students’ Success and Juvenile Justice Involvement

Millions of U.S. public school students in grades K-12 are suspended or expelled in an academic school year, particularly students in middle and high school. Research demonstrates that when students are removed from the classroom as a disciplinary measure, the odds increase dramatically that they will repeat a grade, drop out, or become involved in the juvenile justice system. These negative consequences disproportionately affect children of color as well as students with special needs. Policymakers and practitioners have a growing need to identify strategies for effectively managing students’ behavior and aligning schools’ policies in order to support student engagement and learning, and reduce poor academic outcomes and juvenile justice contact. Although some states and local governments have taken promising steps to address these issues, decision makers and front-line practitioners lack a comprehensive, multisystem approach to making school discipline more effective.

Visit http://justicecenter.csg.org/resources/juveniles to see the report that was referenced at the September Courageous Conversations meeting.

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Every Friday – At weekly Friday forums, activists from churches, law enforcement, NAACP, AISD, ACC, and other organizations, report on progress of ongoing projects. 9 -10am at the NAACP office at 1704 E 12^th St.

Contact Jan Dawes jdawes@grandecom.net or Janice Curry jlcurry@austin.rr.com for more information.