For the last several weeks, my community has been going through something new. The teachers in our state walked out of their classrooms.
Here is what happened:
- Hundreds of teachers have been at the capital from my district every day of the walkout. They've been meeting with legislators from our district asking for them to support legislation that will solidly move education in the right direction of restoring funding.
- Other teachers have been here locally, organizing to feed thousands of students and families who may be affected by the walkout.
- Community members and businesses have offered financial support for the teachers and community during this time.
- Tutoring programs, free child-care programs, and other supplementary offerings have popped up in needed areas, organized by community here.
The community has overwhelming come out to support our students and families.
For the first time, I've seen what it can look like when we focus on what unites us instead of divides us. We all want our community to flourish and be successful. We want to support one another and help our neighbors.
This whole walk out has brought forth a lot of political discussions and for the most part, we have found that we have far more in common than we thought. Throughout this I have heard about and been a part of many conversations that have built bridges.
So I am calling for two continued things from this movement, regardless of when the walkout ends and we go back to school.
We must keep having hard conversations from a place of empathy, love, and common goals.
We must keep working hard. This has been eye-opening about needs in our community. We have to keep this awareness and dedication to service within our community.
So this blog is a way of me sharing those goals, documenting my own progress and opportunities to fulfill the goals, and hopefully an inspiration for others to join us.
