This coming week is full of opportunities (some of which are listed below, in chronological order) for DC residents to weigh in on a variety of important issues in our schools:

November 15, 6 pm: The DC state board of education (SBOE) holds the first of two public engagement sessions on social studies standards, school accountability (STAR framework and school ratings), and education governance. This meeting will be held in person at the Deanwood Recreation Center (1350 49th St. NE). SBOE will ask attendees to participate in breakout sessions.

Sign up is here.

Another SBOE in person public engagement meeting on those subjects above is slated for December 4 at the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library (newly renovated!) at 10:30 am (901 G NW).

(An asynchronous virtual option is also available–but as of this posting not yet ready for prime time.)

November 16, 6 pm: Listening session for DCPS high school and middle school students on tech challenges, sponsored by Digital Equity in DC Education.

The parents who run this group are seeking feedback on students’ tech challenges so they can push to get DCPS to improve tech for all its students. No RSVP is needed—just contact the group here for more information (or send email to digitalequitydc@gmail.com).

(Related: here are responses by DCPS to questions from the chair of the DC Council in advance of the 11/5/21 hearing on digital equity legislation.)

November 17, 5:30 pm: DCPS budget update; RSVP here.

Unlike this week’s DCPS budget hearing on 11/9/21 (wherein DCPS took commentary from the public on how no one knows what their new budget model looks like nor how it will affect our individual school budgets; on how schools remain inequitably funded; and on how some school buildings are simply frighteningly and dangerously unkept–oh, hey there Langley!), it’s not clear whether the public this time gets to speak while DCPS maybe lets us know something about its new budget model.

(Expect the words “equity,” “transparency,” and “flexibility” to figure large in DCPS’s statements, which are likely to be about how schools’ budgets will now be enrollment-based. To be fair, this is the only way DC can realistically legitimize closing DCPS schools to free them up for charters because, as the deputy mayor for education’s office has pointed out, there aren’t a lot of DCPS buildings otherwise available for that purpose. Priorities!)

November 17, also 5:30 pm: DC state board of education meeting in which you can register your thoughts on the board’s upcoming overhaul of the STAR rating and school report cards. Just be sure to sign up 48 hours ahead of time.

And now, a late addition! The state board has extended the deadline for its survey on the STAR rating until November 17 at 5 pm. Take the survey here.