Race Cannot Be Ignored In Closing The Achievement Gap In Public Education

Narrowing the achievement gap in schools requires acknowledging race, not ignoring it.

September 16, 2007

The achievement gap between African American and Latino students and their white peers is stark and persistent. It has existed for decades, and it’s growing more pronounced. The data refute what would be reassuring explanations. The gaps in reading and math test scores are not due to income disparities, nor are they attributable to parents’ educational levels. The simple fact is that most black and brown children do not do as well in school as most whites.

The data also show, however, that African American and Latino children are excelling in schools scattered throughout California and the nation, suggesting that the achievement gap is not intractable. Rather, there is a profound disconnect between what we say are high expectations for children of color and the quality of education delivered to them in the classroom.

All of which leads to an uncomfortable but important conclusion: If a less-stratified society is desirable, we must be prepared to design educational programs that explicitly take race into account, that address African American and Latino students specifically and that openly recognize that we are not a single society when it comes to the needs of our children.

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Alberto Gonzales Resigns – Leaves A Badly Damaged Department of Justice

Alberto Gonzales was one of the worst Attorney Generals in modern American history.

He was a man truly out of his depth who was installed as a crass political operative at a time when the nation deserved a professional Justice leader and defender of the Constitution.

Gonzales was simply a political hack doing the bidding of the White House – not an independent voice of reason and sanity.

This politically beholden Attorney General Alberto Gonzales did so much damage in so little time – especially to the Civil Rights and Voting Rights Divisions.

The Department of Justice will be hard pressed to soon recover any semblance of the integrity and regard it has now lost as a result of the many indefensible actions of Alberto Gonzales.

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National Black And Brown Re-Entry Summit Agenda

THE NATIONAL BLACK-BROWN SUMMIT ON RE-ENTRY & RECIDIVISM
AUGUST 19-22, 2007
THE ADAMS MARK HOTEL
DALLAS, TEXAS.
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Sunday, August 19

4:00 – 7:00 pm On-site Registration
6:00 – 8:00 pm Opening Reception

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Monday, August 20

7:30 am – 8:30 am Continental Breakfast

8:00 am Continued Registration (all day)

9:00 am – 10:30 am Opening Plenary

Presiding: Carmelita Pope Freeman, Regional Director, U.S. Department of Justice, Community Relations Service

Richard H. Jacques/ CEO, Second Chance Education Development.

Invocation: Bishop Charles Bledsoe, CEO National Church Empowerment Consortium

Greetings: Richard Roper, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas

Welcome:

Dr. Elba Garcia, Mayor Pro Tem

Dr. Wright Lassiter Jr., Chancellor
Dallas County Community College District

Rosa Rosales, LULAC President

Dennis Hayes, President and CEO, NAACP

Keynote Speaker: The Honorable Danny K. Davis, U.S.
Congressman from Chicago; Author, Second Chance
Act of 2007

10:30 am – 12:00 pm CONCURRENT PANELS

1. The Second Chance Act: Its Impact on Federal, State & Local Agencies

Moderator:

Richard H. Jacques/Second Chance Education-Development

Panelists:

David Robison, Proactive Approaches to Community Supervision, CROSS

Gary Bledsoe, Attorney and Member of NAACP National Board; Former Texas NAACP President (Invited)

Congressman Danny K. Davis, 7th District Illinois, Second Chance Act

2. Re-entry: Homelessness, Housing Assistance & Other Support Services

Moderator:

Roman Palomares, Chairman, Homeward Bound; Former LULAC Chief of Staff; and, LULAC National Housing Commission Member

Panelists:

Tina Naidoo, Program Director of Texas Offenders Re-entry Initiative
Crystal City Representative

David Robison, The Ex-Offender Mortgage Program (TEMP)

3. Juvenile & the Re-entry Process: Issues & Concerns

Moderator:

Durrand Hill, Chief Prosecutor – Juvenile, Dallas County District Attorney’s Office

Panelists:

Israel Pena, Phoenix Project, Gang Intervention

Mike Griffiths, Director, Dallas County Juvenile Detention Center

4. Ensuring Success for Male Students at Cedar Valley and Mountain
View College

Moderator:

Leonard Garrett, Ph.D., Vice President of Student Support Services and Enrollment Management, Mountain View College, DCCCD

Panelist:

Jonas Young, Director of Testing Serices at Cedar Valley College, DCCCD

Joel Riley, Counselor and Professor of Human Development at Cedar Valley College, DCCCD

Raymond Lee, Director of ASSET Program, Mountain View College, DCCCD

12:00 pm – 2:00 pm LUNCH

Presiding: Rene Martinez, Dallas Independent School District

Invocation: Pastor Larry Gardner, Potters House

Greetings: Roberto Alonzo, State Representative

Vicki Hallman, Regional Director, Dallas Parole Division,
Texas Department of Criminal Justice

Rafael Anchia, State Representative

Introduction to Speaker: Dianne Gibson, Community Courts Program Manager, Office of the City Attorney Dallas Community Courts
Keynote Speaker: Craig Watkins, Dallas County District Attorney

2:00 pm – 3:30 pm CONCURRENT PANELS

5. Black/Brown Issues for Re-entry, Similarities/Differences, Community

Moderator:

Hector Flores, Immediate Past President, LULAC; Head of Minority Recruitment, Dallas Independent School District

Panelists:

Adelfa Callejo, Attorney; Chairwoman, Dallas Hispanic Coalition

Gary Bledsoe, Attorney and Member of NAACP National Board; Former Texas NAACP President (Invited)

Will Harrell, Chief Ombudsman, Texas Youth Commission; Former Director of Texas ACLU

Michael Lee, CEO Operation Oasis/CROSS

6. Overcoming the Barriers for the Returning Felon: Education & Employment

Moderator:

Edward Elizondo, LULAC District III Civil Rights Committee Chair; EEOC Outreach Program Manager, Retired

Panelist:

Charles Dillon, Program Director Operation Oasis/CROSS

Katrina Eddins, Project Rio, Texas Worksource

Joan Sanger, Career Edge Systems

7. Life Guide America, Making Good Choices

Moderator:

Treva McDaniel, Program Director, North Central Texas Urban League

Panelist:

Robert Pitre, CEO Life Guide America

8. Best Practices: Getting Offenders Back on Track- The Prosecutors Role In Re-entry

Moderator:

Chikita Tatum, Director Mercy Inc.

Panelist:

Lateefah Simon, Director-San Francisco District Attorney’s Office, Re-entry Unit

Paul Henderson, Assistant District Attorney, San Francisco District Attorney’s Office

9. El Centro/ Bill J. Priest –Employment, Education, Enrichment for the Offender Population

Moderator:

Clifton White, Parole Supervisor, Dallas Parole Division, Texas Department of Criminal Justice

Panelist:

Leslie Shelby, Ed.D., Dean of Instruction, Bill J. Priest Institute

Chuck Waldrop, Director Center for Government Contracting-SBDC
Bill J. Priest Institute

Roderick Caples, Community Job Developer
City of Dallas Offender Re-entry Initiative

4:00 pm – 6:00 pm Tour A –
Texas Department of Criminal Justice-Day Resource Center
1010 Cadiz, Dallas, Texas 75215

Community Resource One-Stop System (CROSS) Re-entry Program
1402 Corinth Street, Dallas, Texas 75215

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Tuesday, August 21

7:30 am – 8:30 am Continental Breakfast

8:00 am Continued Registration (all day)

9:00 am – 10:30 am Opening Plenary

Presiding: Richard Sambrano, LULAC TX Civil Rights Committee Chair

Invocation: Bishop Charles Bledsoe, CEO National Church Empowerment Consortium

Greetings: Lupe Valdez, Dallas County Sheriff

David Kunkle, Chief, Dallas Police Department

Terri Hodge, Texas State Representative

Speaker: Gerardo Maldonado, Regional Director, U.S. Bureau of Prisons

Speaker: Madeline Ortiz, Director for Rehabilitation and Re-entry Programs Division, Texas Department of Criminal Justice

10:30 am – 12:00 pm CONCURRENT PANELS

10. Basic Civil Rights & the Returning Felons

Moderator:

Richard Sambrano, Texas State LULAC Civil Rights Committee Chair; Retired Mediator from the U.S. Department of Justice, Community Relations Service

Panelists:

Will Harrell, Chief Ombudsman, Texas Youth Commission; Former Director of Texas ACLU

Jeff Blackburn, Innocence Project Attorney, Amarillo, Texas (Invited)

John Walker, Desegregation and Civil Rights Attorney, Little Rock, Arkansas (Invited)

11. Re-entry Program: Addressing the Underlying Issues – Substance Abuse & Mental Illness

Moderator:

Shalonda Richardson-Grant, Specialized Parole Officer, Texas Youth Commission

Panelists:

The Honorable Jerry Cruzotte, Judge

The Honorable Robert Frances, Judge

Michael Laughlin, Senior U.S. Probation/Pretrial Services Officer/Offender Workforce Development Specialist, U.S. Probation/Pretrial Services Office of the Northern District of Texas

12. Influence of Gangs on the Returning Felon to the Community

Moderator:

Heath Harris, Chief Prosecutor – Gang Violence, Dallas County District Attorney’s Office

Panelists:

Ernesto Chaplin, Director Ernesto Lucio Ministries

Cornelius Moore, Unit Supervisor, Dallas Parole Division, Texas Department of Criminal Justice

Amy Allen, Dallas Gang Initiative, City Attorney Office, City of Dallas

13. Best Practices: Prison Fellowship

Moderator:

David Robison, CROSS Representative

Panelist:

William Anderson, Arizona State Director Prison Fellowship, Operation SOAR

12:00 pm – 2:00 pm LUNCH

Presiding: Gloria Campos, Channel 8 Anchor

Invocation: Pastor Larry Gardner, Potters House

Speakers: The Honorable Lena Levario, Judge Criminal District Court

Royce West, Texas Senator from Dallas

Introduction of Speaker: Michael Lee, CEO Operation Oasis/CROSS

Keynote Speaker: Mark Early, President and CEO of Prison Fellowship Ministries, Former State Senator and Attorney General for State of Virginia

2:00 pm – 3:30 pm CONCURRENT PANELS

14. Women and the Re-entry Process: F 3-Females, First & Foremost

Moderator:

Ana Yanez Correa, Director of the Texas Criminal Justice Policy Coalition

Panelists:

Evelyn Schaffer, Assistant Regional Director, Parole Division, Texas Department of Criminal Justice

Andrenett Hayes-Jones, Parole Supervisor, Parole Division, Texas Department of Criminal Justice

15. Criminal Justice Sentencing & Supervision & Their Role in Recidivism

Moderator:

Gaylord Thomas, Manager, City of Dallas Offender Re-entry Initiative

Panelists:

The Honorable Lena Levario, Judge District Court 104

Jeff Blackburn, Innocence Project Attorney, Amarillo, Texas (Invited)

Gwen Broadnax, Dallas Probation – Outreach Coordinator

16. CROSS/Homeward Bound/City of Dallas Offender Re-entry Initiative/Dallas County Community College District Re-entry Program

Moderator:

Roman Palomares, Chairman, Homeward Bound; Former LULAC Chief of Staff; and, LULAC National Housing Commission Member

Panelists:

David Robison, CROSS Representative

Richard H. Jacques, CEO Second Chance Education Development

Gaylord Thomas, Manager, City of Dallas Re-entry Initiative

17. Best Practices: Washington, D.C. Re-entry Initiative

Moderator:

Fred Jones, Victory 2000

Panelist:

Rahim Jenkins, Director, Washington, D.C. Re-entry Initiative

18. The Job Lead Generator-Workforce Re-entry Initiative

Moderator:

Chris Pipkin, Operation Oasis/CROSS

Panelist:

Victor Pratt, Director Job Lead Generator

4:00 pm – 6:00 pm Tour B (if needed)

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Wednesday, August 22

8:00 am – 10:00 am LEGISLATIVE BREAKFAST

Moderator:

Ana Yanez Correa, Director of Texas Criminal Justice Policy Coalition

Speakers:

Jerry Madden, Texas State Representative

Terri Hodge, Texas State Representative

Yvonne Davis, Texas State Representative

10:00 am – 12:00 pm Summit Summary & Analysis

Presiding: Carmelita Pope Freeman, Regional Director, U.S. Department of Justice, Community Relations Service