#IAMLeandro Tour To Launch Jan. 25
Tour aims to bring awareness to NC’s opportunity & obligation to Invest Education statewide issue of equity in public education
DURHAM, NC – Community Conversations, in partnership with North Carolina Central University’s Social Justice and Racial Equity Institute, is seeking to bring awareness to Leandro v. NC at a press conference that will take place on January 25th. The Leandro v. NC case is NC’s benchmark case to provide access to a sound, basic education in the state of NC and the $5.54B provisions associated with the Leandro Comprehensive Remedial Plan – an outcome of 30 years of litigation. The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law has joined in the initiative to support bringing awareness to the case. The next review of the case will be on February 22nd and it is imperative to bring awareness about how this can impact children’s access to equitable public education in NC.
The case originally consisted of five counties in North Carolina: Hoke, Cumberland, Halifax, Robeson, and Vance, that due to their low income tax revenue were not properly funded public education opportunities. Over the course of 30 years of litigation, it has been decisively and consistently proven that statewide, NC is falling short of its Constitutional obligation to provide access to a sound, basic education to every child. However, the case brings forward the critical needs regarding adequate and equitable funding for public education and what interventions are required to remediate the crisis. The longevity of this case also reveals a reticence in our state to fulfill its moral and constitutional duty to our children in every county. The Leandro Plan can increase teacher’s assistants, social workers, school nurses, and other support staff to improve their educational resources. The Leandro Plan also includes universal access to early childhood education and facility upgrades.
Lead Advocate of Community Conversations, Rebecca Trammel, seeks to inform voters and stakeholders of the transformational impact of the Leandro Comprehensive Remedial Plan and provisions that have been required by NC Supreme Court verdicts yet remain unfulfilled.
Community Conversations is an organization that promotes awareness and mobilizes intentional action to eliminate institutional disparities and injustice in the education system in North Carolina. Community Conversations recently received a $100,000 State-Level Systemic Change Grant from the esteemed Z Smith Reynolds Foundation. This grant aligns with ZSR’s commitment to supporting state, regional, and local organizations dedicated to achieving systemic change across priority areas such as advancing public education, fostering a healthy and sustainable environment, promoting social and economic justice, and strengthening democracy.
“Eighty percent of our children go to public school, which means all of us are impacted. From the CEO to the teacher, from the parent to the public health official, from concerned members of the community to every child, we are all ‘Leandro’ ,” said Rebecca Trammel, lead advocate of Community Conversations. After 30 years, it is time to get Leandro out of the courtroom and into the classroom.
“There is no issue more fundamental to addressing racial and social injustice in our society than educational inequities at the K-12 level,” said Professor Ansel Brown, co-director of NCCU’s Social Justice and Racial Equity Institute. “Every child deserves equal opportunity to realize his or her full human potential and contribution to our world. North Carolina recognizes this fundamental principle, and the Leandro case is at the heart of this pillar of equal opportunity and justice for our children.”
A virtual press conference will take place on Thursday, January 25th, at 3pm followed by an intermission and panel discussion that will take place at North Carolina Central University’s Student Center. The event is followed by a reception at 6pm. The program begins promptly at 7PM. Our host for the evening, Co-Founder of the Social Justice and Racial Equity Institute and Assistant Professor of Law at NCCU Ansel Brown will give words of welcome. Remarks will be made by Dean and FMR NC Supreme Court Judge Patricia Timmons-Goodson. We will engage in a brief presentation by Community Conversations. Our panel, moderated by Marcus Bass of Advance Carolina, will feature:
Dr. Irv Joyner
Councilwoman Jackie McLean
David Hinojosa
Kevin Primus
The media is invited to attend the press conference and to schedule press interviews. To confirm attendance, RSVP by Jan. 25th by 10am TheLuxPRAgency@gmail.com or hello@nakomapr.com.
MEDIA CONTENT:
Community Conversations: https://communityconversationsilm.com/
The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law: https://www.lawyerscommittee.org/
North Carolina Central University’s Social Justice and Racial Equity Institute: https://law.nccu.edu/academics/sjrei/