why we fight - SFER

Why We Fight

Here’s the deal: Right now there’s a lot to fight about such as gun violence, crippling student loan debt, the right to use the bathroom that aligns with our gender, inequity based on where we happened to be born … the list goes on. But, right now is also an opportunity to fight for so much more! Collectively, we can stand up to demand change and take our voices to the halls of power.

We’re the ones who’ve most recently been through the K-12 education system. No one knows better than us what needs to change. No one knows better than us how that same system is plagued with – and in large part responsible for – the continued oppression of marginalized people in America, stemming from centuries of racial and social injustice. The key to unlocking an equitable future for kids EVERYWHERE is for US to get involved in this fight.

Why We Should Care

  • The current national gaps (between white-black/white-hispanic) represent differences of roughly one-and-a-half years of normal academic progress ( The Brookings Institution, 2018)
  • 1 in 6 adults (35 million) under 65 in U.S. have low literacy - reading skills that are below those of 4th graders (NPR, 2018)
  • The socioeconomic status of a child’s parents is a strong predictor of child’s academic achievement and educational attainment (SAS, 2017)
  • ¾ of both African American and Latinx young people attend schools where most of their classmates qualify as low income (compared to about ⅓ of white students) (The Atlantic, 2016)
  • Black students are suspended and expelled at 3x the rate of white students ( U.S, Department of Education’s Civil Rights, 2014)
  • Only 1 in 5 of American teachers are of color (Education is Good, 2017)
  • The very real school-to-prison pipeline funnels students into the criminal justice system

How We Win

To make a lasting, sustainable difference and improve the lives of marginalized kids all over this country is to get involved in the fight for educational justice. That’s where YOU come in. SFER develops college students like you (the most recent products of the school system) into grassroots organizers who fight for educational equity in their communities.

SFER leverages its six coalitions in the US across Minnesota, Massachusetts, Los Angeles and The Bay Area, Colorado and North Carolina to:

  • Identify and train college students on organizing
  • Organize for action to change state and district-level school policies
  • Build new power to improve schools faster in communities that have been traditionally underserved by public schools

Join the Movement!

Feeling fired up? GOOD, us too. We need more folks like you ready and willing to fight to unleash the mass, powerful potential of America’s future generations. Join to receive updates and action alerts about the fight for educational equity.

When We Win

  • SFER Minnesota GOT S**T DONE at Saint Paul Public Schools (SPPS) to decrease the literacy gap between white students and students of color.
  • SFER NC held an UnDocuGraduation at the NC state capitol demanding tuition be the same for ALL students – including those who are undocumented.
  • SFER CA pushed for access to great teachers for every kid in Richmond, CA.
  • SFER California joined forces with the wider community to successfully rally against the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) to align High School graduation requirements with local college entry requirements, , save breakfast in the classroom program, and adopt the School of Climate Bill of Rights
  • SFER Minnesota partnered with local lawmakers to pass legislation that will provide resources for college and career readiness [K-12 education policy and finance bill, House File 630]