We’re just DAYS away from PAVE’s seventh annual DC Parent Voice and Choice Week (DCPVCW) kicking off!

Beginning on Monday, January 23rd, parent leaders will chair meetings with DC’s elected leaders and policymakers, ask questions, and share their stories and perspectives - including their Statements of Beliefs on Out-of-School Time (OST) programs and School-based Mental Health (SBMH).

As we look ahead to our upcoming week of #ParentPower, we also want to acknowledge recent progress and efforts that have been made toward our #ParentPriorities. After all, PAVE’s advocacy extends BEYOND DCPVCW!

PAVE’s Partnership to Extend Holistic Supports in Schools

This fall, PAVE launched Whole DC, a partnership of local education organizations in DC – PAVE, DCPS, DC Public Education Fund, Education Forward DC, The Porticus Foundation, Transcend, Turnaround for Children, and the GW Center for Health and Health Care in Schools – that is focused on ensuring that all DC children fulfill their lifelong potential through anti-racist, whole-child learning experiences that prepare them to thrive.

[left] Dr. Bazron discussing the importance of school based behavioral health resources at this week’s Whole DC session.
[right] December 15th’s Whole DC session focused on restorative justice.

December’s Whole DC sessions focused on social emotional learning (co-hosted with Transcend at HD Cooke), and restorative practices  (co-hosted with SchoolTalk DC at Columbia Heights Education Campus), and spurred robust conversations about actions DC can take to make progress for ALL kids! 

This past week’s session co-hosted with Mary's Center and EL Haynes Public Charter School, focused on mental health clinicians. We were joined by Dr. Barbara Bazron, Director of the Department of Behavioral Health and Dr. Michelle Walker-Davis, Executive Director of the DC Public Charter School Board who shared their perspectives on the critical need of SBMH in schools.

We look forward to continuing our conversations about SBMH supports with district leaders including Paul Kihn, Deputy Mayor for Education (DME) & Wayne Turnage, Deputy Mayor for the District of Columbia Health and Human Services (DMHHS) during DCPVCW!

During her inauguration speech on January 2nd, Mayor Muriel Bowser pledged to:

“...build the best, most robust free before and after-school program in the nation." 

Increased access to #OST programs is a PAVE #ParentPriority, and as Ward 4 PLE Board member Marisa Goldstein wrote in her post for the PAVE Blog:
 

 “We know from a robust body of research that OST programs like before and after care confer a number of academic, social-emotional, and economic benefits. These programs provide opportunities for academic enrichment, allow young people to explore new activities and find joy in learning, build important social skills, and provide safe spaces for kids that allow their caregivers to work. As we continue to support students and families to recover from the traumas and challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, these programs are more important than ever. “

More good news on the OST front came on January 13th when At-Large Councilmember Christina Henderson introduced the Out of School Time Special Education Inclusion and Standards Amendment Act of 2023! The bill requires,

“…the Office of Out of School Time Grants and Youth Outcomes and the Office of the State Superintendent of Education (“OSSE”) to develop standards to train or recruit out of school time (“OST”) providers for students with Individualized Education Programs (“IEPs”).”

We look forward to continuing our conversation about the importance of OST supports with Mayor Bowser and Councilmember Henderson during DCPVCW!

Visit us online at dcpave.org and follow PAVE on Twitter & Instagram @dcpave for updates on DCPVCW and more!

Have questions? Reach out to us at info@dcpave.org!