On March 11, 2019, BUILD’s Youth & Education issue action team demonstrated the diversity and power of BUILD by sending a group of 134 BUILD members to participate in the March for Our Schools rally alongside thousands of teachers, students, and parents from across Maryland.
The March for Our Schools rally was coordinated by the Maryland State Education Association because Maryland public schools are underfunded by $2.9 billion annually—an average of $2 million in every school across the state. Rally participants called for:
- Equitable and adequate funding for ALL schools and students
- More staff, including counselors and psychologists
- Raises for teachers and living wages for support staff
- Expanded career and technical education
- Universal pre-kindergarten
- More funding for special education and English language learners
- Community schools and support for families
Over the past year, BUILD has been organizing within member institutions and our sister organizations across Maryland to raise awareness about opportunities for increasing Maryland public school funding. After last December’s action with Baltimore City Public Schools CEO Dr. Santelises, the Youth & Education issue action team set a goal of turning out a more diverse team for their next action to demonstrate the broad-based power of BUILD.
In preparation for the March 11 rally, BUILD leaders Jill Vasbinder Morrison and Lucy Mendez at Hampstead Hill Academy trained 25 students, teachers, and parents about the goals and purpose of the rally. Together, the group made signs and organized turnout, resulting in 2 coach buses full of 110 Hampstead Hill students, family members, administrators, and teachers—about half Latino—traveling together to Annapolis!
Several other BUILD institutions also participated in the rally, including a group of immigrants from Nepal and West African countries from the Immigration Outreach Service Center. In recent weeks, BUILD leaders Cynthia Keenan, Sarah Flores, Benedicta Kim, and Elizabeth Reichelt trained BUILD members (in multiple languages) on the urgency of and opportunities for school funding, and coordinated logistics for BUILD institutions to caravan and carpool to Annapolis together.
Because of the Youth & Education issue action team’s efforts toward language inclusion in organizing around school funding, the team was able to demonstrate the diversity and power of BUILD in Annapolis before educators and parents from across Maryland, and the Maryland State Education Association recognized BUILD as a partner and supporter of the rally.
As the state of Maryland gears up for a school funding fight in the 2020 legislative session with the highly-anticipated release of the Kirwan Commission Report, BUILD is positioning itself to lead the battle in Baltimore and beyond, ensuring opportunities for our students to succeed.
