Save Our Schools March and National Call to Action

Last weekend I traveled to D.C., with fellow field reporter Tim Scott, to cover the Save Our Schools March and National Call to Action. We spent two days at the S.O.S. conference, participating in sessions with students, teachers, education scholars that dealt with a wide range of issues around inequity in public schooling. We interviewed Jonathon Kozol, Diane Ravitch, Michelle Fine, Diane Levin, the Brooklyn teachers/filmmakers behind “The Inconvenient Truth Behind Waiting for Superman,” as well as students and teachers from across the country. We heard personal testimonies of what is happening in schools, in classrooms and in unions around the nation, and we left each day both frustrated and inspired by the stories we heard.

We then joined the rally and march on the Ellipse on Saturday – interviewing more teachers (as well as Matt Damon – and if you haven’t seen this fun clip from the media tent at the rally, be sure to check it out here).

We have returned from the event, not only armed with hours of insightful and passionate testimony – but with renewed conviction and energy to continue the fight for equitable public schooling for all children and fair labor conditions for teachers and staff.

In the next few weeks, we will debut our first show, which will focus on the rally and march. The second show will emerge from the material we gathered at the conference. The rest of our tentative topic line up is as follows:

3. Jonathon Kozol’s keynote from the S.O.S conference
4. Diane Ravitch’s keynote from the S.O.S conference
5. The Inconvenient Truth Behind Waiting for Superman…interview with the filmmakers and the movie profile
6. Virtual Charter Schools
7. Peck Full Service Community School in Holyoke

Please stay tuned for more information on where to find our shows! Also, please feel free to contact us at educatradio@gmail.com with comments and suggestions.