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SKCE and Our Partners

Posts about our work with other community groups and non-profits

The Summer Language and Culture Institute is in Session!

Salem Keizer teachers and staff are once again giving up some of their summer break to attend the Summer Language and Culture Institute at SKCE. This set of Spanish language lessons, workshops, classes and field trips is provided as an aid to teachers and staff in connecting with and understanding Latino students and their families. The Institute is provided over two weeks. It includes morning Spanish classes so teachers can begin to communicate with students in basic Spanish. The afternoon sessions are either at SKCE or by taking field trip. The field trips introduce teachers to Latino neighborhoods and businesses, and to immigrant classes and organizations. The on-site SKCE workshops are a combination of meeting Latino students who discuss problems they face, classes covering equity vs equality, Popular Education, and meeting Latino business people.

 

In the first week, Annalivia Palazzo-Angulo talks with the Institute attendees while everyone keeps cool in the shade at Northgate Park.

 

Phil Decker speaks with attendees at SKCE.

Some teachers get the feel of long, flowing skirts for a Mexican folk dance.

A visit to PCUN in Woodburn to talk with Ramon Ramirez, past President of PCUN

 

 

 

Student Attendance in Salem Keizer schools Improves and SKCE was a Part of This Improvement

Here’s the notice from Salem Keizer Public Schools

Press Release

For Immediate Release

June 21, 2019

 

 

More Than 400 Additional Students Attended School Regularly in 2018-19
Seventy-five percent of SKPS schools increased their attendance rates from the previous year

 

SALEM, Ore. – In Salem-Keizer Public Schools (SKPS), 49 of the district’s 65 schools grew their attendance rates since the 2017-18 school year, and more than 400 additional students are considered to be regular attenders.

At the beginning of the 2018-19 school year, SKPS launched “Every Day 24J” to raise awareness with students and families, schools, community organizations and local officials regarding chronic absenteeism. Since the start of the campaign, schools and community organizations have been collaborating to identify barriers to attendance for students across the district. The work has centered around connecting students and families to community resources, providing incentives for positive attendance trends and most importantly, building relationships with each and every student.

“We know that students succeed when they know that there is someone who believes in them,” said Superintendent Christy Perry. “Regular attendance is a key indicator of student success and habits start with our very youngest learners in pre-kindergarten. Building connections with students from day one and encouraging them to be there every day is the first step toward helping our students reach the graduation stage.”

Chronic absenteeism is defined by the Oregon Department of Education (ODE) as missing 10 percent or more of the school year. In SKPS that equates to as little as two days a month–18 days a year.

Across the district schools are working to improve their attendance rates through identifying resources for their students, community engagement and more. At Highland Elementary School, students improved their attendance rate since the 2017-18 school year by nearly nine percentage points.

“We worked to find the root cause of our attendance challenges,” said Principal Christi Cheever. “As we continued to make personal calls each day, we identified barriers for our students such as transportation and lack of housing or clothes that made it difficult for our students to be at school. We worked with the district and our community partners to wraparound and support our students’ needs, and ultimately help boost attendance.”

Through a grant with Kaiser Permanente, the Salem/Keizer Coalition for Equality is also working to develop attendance supports for families in the North Salem High feeder system. At North, students improved their attendance rate this year by 6.3 percentage points.

“The sense of urgency regarding attendance has never been stronger,” said Assistant Principal Carlos Ruiz. “Our strengths are making relationships, which are foundational in education. It doesn’t matter what your title is; we all have the capacity and power to connect with kids.”

During the summer, the district will continue to collaborate with community organizations to develop additional supports and resources for families, students and educators to continue to improve attendance.

“The improvements to our attendance rates across the district are so encouraging,” said Perry. “However, we still have a lot of work to do, and this is work that we will continue to do until we help each and every student be there every day in District 24J.”

Civil Rights Activist and SKCE Co-Founder

(photo from the Statesman Journal)

Rose Lewis gave her life to her community. She had a passion to fight racism and she never stopped. She was involved in every action and event relating to eliminating racism and was a devoted supporter of the Salem Keizer Coalition for Equality. Rose was also a peacemaker. She did everything with grace and love. She had the ear of everyone who knew her. She was a convener of our social institutions and the community, and she took advantage of every opportunity to help organize and participate with the Salem Police, City and School District. Thank you Rose, with love, all of us at the Salem Keizer Coalition for Equality, especially Annalivia, Eduardo and Javier, who were long time friends of Rose.

If you would like to attend the memorial for Rose, please open this link to see the details and to RSVP the memorial and potluck.

The following extract is from the full interview that Rose and her friend, Loraine Stuart, another co-founder of SKCE, did for the Coalition in March. Both Rose and Loraine have been strong supporters of SKCE since the very beginning.

 

 

 

Four Corners, Phil Decker and SKCE in the Salem Reporter

The second article in the Salem Reporter focuses on Four Corners Elementary School, and the challenges that they have in providing education to their students. Annalivia Palazzo, the SKCE Executive Director, also comments on some of the challenges.

Read the article here.

Four Corners Elementary principal Phil Decker photographed on the playground students Wednesday March 13, 2019. Salem-Keizer schools for Rachel Alexander/The Salem Reporter Wednesday 3/13/19. 2019 Fred Joe / www.fredjoephoto.com

An In-Depth Look at Salem School Challenges by Salem Reporter

The new online publication, the Salem Reporter, is providing some good information about schools in the Salem Keizer School District. The articles are well written and cover some important points. This is the first one.

This is the April 16th article.

Bailee Moore (pink fuzzy ears), and classmates work on a computer math exercise in Becky Montgomery’s 2nd grade class at Highland Elementary School in Salem Wednesday March 13, 2019. Salem-Keizer schools for Rachel Alexander/The Salem Reporter Wednesday 3/13/19. 2019 Fred Joe / www.fredjoephoto.com

 

 

2018 SKCE and SKSD co-sponsored the Summer Culture and Language Institute

Teachers, administrators and other staff attended the 2018 Summer Culture and Language Institute from the Salem Keizer School District and other school districts in the area.  This was the second year the Summer Institute was offered and co-sponsored. The curriculum was appreciated last year, and it was reflected in the attendance, which doubled this year.

The Institute began on June 29th and ended on July 3rd. Mornings were spent learning Spanish, and afternoons were spent with speakers presenting on both culture and education equity. Field trips were also provided to schools that have a high ration of Latino students, a neighborhood that illustrated the problems that Latino families must encounter, as well as Latino businesses and organizations.

This Institute is co-sponsored by the Salem Keizer Coalition for Equality and the Salem Keizer School District.

The following slideshow will give an overview of the kinds of activities that school personnel engaged in during the Institute.