California Black Media

U.S. Rep. Kamlager-Dove Leads Discussion on Improving Black Student Learning, Test Scores

On April 8, U.S. Congressmember Sydney Kamlager-Dove (D-CA-37) moderated a roundtable focused on Los Angeles Unified School District’s (LAUSD) strategies to improve Black student performance in classrooms. Kamlager-Dove, who represents a district that covers parts of Los Angeles County, hopes that ideas shared at the event can be incorporated into models that can impact other regions across California, where Black students continue to fall behind their peers of other races and ethnicities.

Published

6 months ago

June 7, 2024

Oakland Post

Congresswoman Kamlager-Dove (CA-37) moderates a panel including Dr. Kortne Edogun-Ticey, Senior Advisor, U.S. Department of Education during Roundtable on Equity in Education for Los Angeles Unified School District (R to L) beside Kamlager-Dove Dr. Robert Whitman, Educational Transformation Officer, Los Angeles USD; Dr. Kortne Edogun-Ticey, Senior Advisor, U.S. Department of Education; Keith Linton, Founder, Boys to Gentlemen, Dr. Pedro Noguera, Distinguished Professor and Dean, University of Southern California Rossier School of Education and LAUSD student Jonathan McGee. Photo by Lila Brown (CBM).

By Lila Brown, California Black Media

On April 8, U.S. Congressmember Sydney Kamlager-Dove (D-CA-37) moderated a roundtable focused on Los Angeles Unified School District’s (LAUSD) strategies to improve Black student performance in classrooms.

Kamlager-Dove, who represents a district that covers parts of Los Angeles County, hopes that ideas shared at the event can be incorporated into models that can impact other regions across California, where Black students continue to fall behind their peers of other races and ethnicities.

Discussions at the event centered on LAUSD’s Black Student Achievement Plan (BSAP) and other educational initiatives aimed at enhancing learning and boosting test scores.

“The Black Student Achievement Plan is unique in that it takes a community-centered approach to uplifting Black students,” said Kamlager-Dove during the event held at John Muir Middle School in Los Angeles.

“We must implement culturally responsive education in the classroom to challenge our students academically while giving them a sense of purpose,” she continued.

In 2023, nearly 70% of Black children in California fell below a passing mark on the state standardized English Language Arts exam, and only about 20% of those students were performing at grade level based on their scores on the math assessment test.

A variety of public education experts joined Kamlager on the panel, including Dr. Kortne Edogun-Ticey, Senior Advisor, U.S. Department of Education; Dr. Robert Whitman, Educational Transformation Officer at LAUSD; Dr. Pedro Noguera, Professor and Dean at the University of Southern California Rossier School of Education; and Keith Linton, founder of the non-profit Boys to Gentlemen.

Jonathan McGee, a student who sits on the BSAP Student Advisory Council, also spoke during the panel.

The BSAP was approved by the LAUSD Board of Education in February of the 2020-21 school year. Funds have been earmarked to address the longstanding disparities in educational outcomes between Black students and their non-Black peers. Dating back to the landmark case, Brown v. the Board of Education of Topeka, Kan., in which the U.S. Supreme Court declared that segregated schools were unconstitutional, positive outcomes for Black students continue to lag behind district and national averages for their non-Black counterparts.

Edogun-Ticey spoke about broader investments the federal government is making in education that directly impact Black students through The White House Initiative on Advancing Educational Equity, Excellence, and Economic Opportunity for Black Americans.

‘This administration did not shy away from the idea that we need resources for support which means billions of dollars in investment for HBCUs,” she explained.

BSAP strategies include partnering with Black families and local community; supporting the implementation of culturally and linguistically responsive and anti-racist practices; offering wrap-around support structures; and highlighting experiences that uplift the contributions of the Black community as motivation and models to develop positive Black student identity. Additionally, the BSAP provides increased staffing to support Black students’ academic and social-emotional needs.

“School districts across the country must push back against attacks on marginalized students by implementing programs like the BSAP, which should serve as a model for future initiatives,” Kamlager said.

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Oakland Post: Week of November 13 – 19, 2024

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of November 13 – 19, 2024

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5 days ago

November 16, 2024

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Oakland Post: Week of November 6 – 12, 2024

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California Leaders Pay Tribute to Quincy Jones

On Nov. 4, the celebrated life of music producer Quincy Delight Jones came to an end at his home in Bel Air. The cause of death has not been disclosed. Jones leaves behind a rich legacy of music and achievements that spans 70 plus years. His impact on multiple genres of music as well as his contributions to art and education will have a lasting impact.

Published

2 weeks ago

November 6, 2024

Oakland Post

Quincy Jones. UCLA Digital Library.

By Reginald S. Webb Jr.

California Black Media

On Nov. 4, the celebrated life of music producer Quincy Delight Jones came to an end at his home in Bel Air.

The cause of death has not been disclosed.

Jones leaves behind a rich legacy of music and achievements that spans 70 plus years. His impact on multiple genres of music as well as his contributions to art and education will have a lasting impact.

“Quincy Jones brought the world endless joy with his optimistic spirit and colossal imagination. Not a day goes by without hearing a masterpiece that Quincy produced or hearing about the good he created with his generous heart,” said Gov. Gavin Newsom. “Jen and I — and all of California — mourn the loss of this great humanitarian and artist.”

Jones was born on March 14, 1933, in Chicago. By 10 years old, Jones’s family relocated to Bremerton, Washington where he met his first formal music mentor, Robert Blackwell, a well-known arranger, bandleader, song writer, and producer. He was a vital part of Quincy’s growth as a musician.

In 1951, Jones earned a scholarship to study music at Seattle University. After a semester there, he transferred to Berklee College of Music in Boston. His stay at this college was short-lived because he left to tour with the jazz percussionist and bandleader Lionel Hampton.

“I’m deeply saddened to learn of Quincy Jones’ passing. His talent and resilience led him to not only break barriers but become one of the most successful producers of all time, touching countless lives through music,” said Congresswoman Sydney Kamlager (D-CA-37). “We’ll miss my fellow Chicagoan-turned-Angeleno.”

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said Jones “broke barriers in an industry that had long worked to exclude artists that looked like him.”

“Quincy Jones brought laughter, celebration, happiness and joy into the homes of millions. As a musician, composer, producer, and arranger, he changed our culture, and he changed our world,” added Bass.

Film scoring led to another trailblazing moment for Quincy Jones. He became the first African American to be nominated for an Academy Award for best original film score in 1967 for In Cold Blood. The same year he was also nominated for best original song for, The Eyes of Love, from a film titled Banning.

“He was unmatched in the creativity of his many productions. I will never forget how he worked with me to present Nelson Mandela, where 90 thousand people showed up at the Los Angeles Coliseum following his release from prison in South Africa. Quincy Jones will never be forgotten,” remembers Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA-43).

Over his career, Jones received 80 Grammy nominations and won 28 of them. He released 16 studio jazz albums, 24 soundtracks albums, three live albums, and four compilation albums.

1n 2011, President Barack Obama honored Jones with the National Medal of Arts.

Jones is survived by his seven children and six grandchildren.

“Jones has provided a soundtrack to the best moments of so many lives – and to the deepest movements of change in this country. Our city is forever bettered by his gifts. We celebrate his life, and we mourn this loss,” Bass paid tribute to Jones.