As discussions surrounding the upcoming budget reconciliation proceed, All4Ed, with our civil rights, education, and immigration organization partners, write to Congressional leadership to ensure that educational equity is sufficiently funded as a cornerstone of advancing recovery and building back better. Specifically, we ask that the needs of Black, Indigenous, and other People of Color (BIPOC) students, students from families with low-incomes, English learners, students with disabilities, and students experiencing homelessness, foster care, or engaged in the juvenile justice system be prioritized. These students have been historically, and are presently, underserved in educational settings and are also disproportionately harmed by the on-going health, economic, and educational impacts of the COVID-19 crisis.
We recognize that all students and their families have encountered disruptions, including the transition to online learning; lack of consistent peer and school staff relationships; the loss of treasured activities and needed jobs; and the overall stress and emotional toll of the pandemic on their families and communities. Teachers, school leaders, and other school personnel are also feeling these disruptions and experiencing similar trauma due to uncertainty caused by this crisis. The pandemic has amplified and highlighted existing inequities in the education that we provide to children from different backgrounds, which must be addressed in the budget and reconciliation packages that you champion.
Education will play a critical role in the personal and economic recovery of students and communities from COVID-19. As such, we urge Congress to include in the budget resolution no less than $800 billion in reconciliation instructions to the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions and the House Education and Labor Committees, specifically to invest in early childhood, K-12, and postsecondary education; support caregivers, teachers, and school leaders; and to strengthen learning infrastructure.
Read our full letter below.
