The Nation's Voice for Urban Education
April 2023 • Vol. 32 No. 3
Education Secretary Cardona: School Leaders, Be Changemakers 
U.S. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona urged educators to seize the moment and focus on key priorities including support for student well-being, school safety, and efforts to hire and retain teachers and other school staff.
Fighting for Student Reading Success
Kareem Weaver is second vice president of the NAACP in Oakland and chair of its education committee, and in the past held posts as a teacher, principal, and administrator.

Journalist Says Urban School Leaders in the Forefront of Change
Veteran political journalist John Harwood alerted educators to their integral role as the nation moves toward becoming a majority minority country over the next two decades.

Kansas City Names New Superintendent
Jennifer Collier, who has spent her career as a Kansas City educator, was recently named superintendent of Missouri’s Kansas City Public Schools after serving as interim superintendent since last August. 

How Three Urban School Districts are Investing and Tracking ESSER Funds
At the Council of the Great City Schools’ recent Annual/Legislative Policy Conference, urban educators heard from superintendents of three school districts on how they are using Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funding to meet the needs of their districts.

Linguist Lily Wong Fillmore Named Recipient of Dr. Michael Casserly Legacy Award
Lilly Wong Fillmore, a distinguished linguist and educator, was the recipient of the 2023 Dr. Michael Casserly Legacy Award for Educational Courage and Justice. The award was recently presented to Fillmore at the Council’s recent Legislative/Policy Conference during a surprise ceremony via Zoom. 

Urban Schools Win Green Ribbon Awards
Patrick Henry Downtown Academy Elementary School in St. Louis is located in a neighborhood considered a food desert because of the lack of grocery stores. In an effort to help students eat healthy, the school provides 24-hour student access to its garden.

Upcoming Events
Bilingual, Immigrant, and Refugee Education Directors Meeting
When:
May 2 - May 6, 2023

Where:
Greensboro-High Point Marriott Airport
Greensboro, NC
Executive Director
Ray Hart
Editor
Tonya Harris
Staff Writer
Joanne Coley
Staff Writer
Kalin Hicks
Chair
Kelly Gonez
Board Member, Los Angeles
Chair-elect
Guadalupe Guerrero
Superintendent, Portland
Secretary-Treasurer
Marcia Andrews
Board Member, Palm Beach
A newsletter published by the Council of the Great City Schools, representing 78 of the nation’s largest urban public school districts. Click here to learn more. All news items should be submitted to Tonya Harris (tharris@cgcs.org).