On March 10, 2023, NAPSA Signed on to the “Bill of Rights for Students and Parents” House Resolution sponsored by Rep. Suzanne Bonamici, the resolution emphasizes “inclusive” schools and access to high-quality education. The resolution follows the March 8th marathon education committee session, which stretched 16 hours into the following morning. The resolution says “students benefit from opportunities to learn in diverse, well-funded … schools alongside peers who have had different life experiences” and calls for schools to use materials that are “historically accurate” and “reflect the powerful diversity of the nation.”
The resolution emphasizes the importance of including all students, families, and school staff in this vision, to set an example of inclusion for our broader society. This idea underpins the evidence-based practices heralded by our organizations that support teaching, learning, and family engagement. Creating safe, inclusive, accessible, and supportive schools is the best way to protect the rights of all students, parents, and school staff while maintaining a high-quality, world class public education system. As the Resolution outlines, students’ learning and outcomes is bolstered by their having access to diverse, well-prepared, and fairly compensated school staff who are able to provide a well-rounded, accurate, and culturally responsive curriculum and a diversity of reading materials. However, these enriching opportunities and resources are not available to all students, and so it is critical to expand access to an inclusive, high-quality public education for all students but especially students of color, students with disabilities, LGBTQI+ students, and other marginalized students as outlined in the resolution.