Humbling… see why below.

Faith in Action: The role of faith communities in expanding educational opportunities

Day and Time
Saturday, 01:15 PM – 02:30 PM.

Description
Faith leaders have played a critical role in many social change movements in our nation’s history. Panelists will discuss the role that faith communities can play in eliminating educational inequity and how they are partnering with other organizations to close the achievement gap.

Location
To be determined

Speaker(s)

• Jeremy Del Rio – Co-founder and Director, 20/20 Vision for Schools
• Stephanie Saroki – Co-founder and General Partner , Seton Education Partners
• Anju Bhargava – Member, White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships
• Jon Rosenberg – CEO, Repair the World
• Sayyid Syeed – National Director, Islamic Society of North America Office of Interfaith and Community Alliances

Moderator

• Joshua DuBois – Executive Director, White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships

“Aw c’mon Ms. Baker, nobody thinks we’re smart! If they did, they wouldn’t give us this broken down school and these ratty old books. You don’t even have enough paper and pencils for us!”

As Teach For America’s Vice President of Faith Community Outreach, Ms. Fulgham has spent the last 15 years fighting to overcome educational inequity. Why?

The academic achievement gap, in a well-resourced country like ours, is a tragic moral injustice that should move people of faith to action. As Christians, let’s take stock of how we’re working to eliminate this problem. Are we encouraging our most talented college graduates and young professionals to teach in schools like Solomon’s? Are we mobilizing our church communities to volunteer, tutor, and provide much-needed supplies to under-resourced schools? Are we mobilizing on behalf of students like Solomon to demand that lawmakers create policies that will improve the quality of their education?

The Bible is pretty clear about our responsibility. God says that all children were created in his image, so we should believe every child has unlimited potential. God says that children are incredibly precious to him. And God tells us to eliminate injustice. It’s time for Christians to take a stand on behalf of the ‘least of these’ in our nation’s low-income public schools. Solomon and his classmates are waiting for us.

Full article.