For Immediate Release:
September 18, 2018
Contact:
Matthew Nocella, 202.286.1987 - mnocella@dccouncil.us
Grosso proposes coordinating committee to focus on education of students in care of D.C. government
Washington, D.C. – Building on his work to improve the educational outcomes of students in the care of the District of Columbia government, Councilmember David Grosso (I-At Large), chairperson of the Committee on Education, proposed the establishment of a coordinating committee to focus on the educational success of students who are detained, committed, incarcerated, and in foster care.
“Much of the work of this city has focused on closing the achievement gap between black and white students. However, the educational needs of a subgroup of students who are involved with the justice or foster care systems, have not received as much as attention they deserve,” said Grosso. “As a result of the working group that I convened to examine these issues, I am excited to introduce legislation that will permanently bring stakeholders together to keep a constant focus on a group of students that deserve our government’s undivided attention.”
The Students in the Care of D.C. Coordinating Committee Act of 2018 establishes an interagency coordinating committee to identify challenges and resolve issues that students in detainment, commitment, incarceration, and foster care face as the D.C. government works to fulfill its responsibility to educate these students.
Students in the care of the D.C. government experience many disruptions to education which make it difficult for them to achieve their educational goals, according to a report issued in July by a working group of over 30 entities convened by Councilmember Grosso in 2018. The legislation introduced today is a direct result of the 40 policy recommendations included in that report.
Students who were experiencing challenges in their academic career prior to detention, commitment, incarceration, or placement in foster care are at increased risk of falling even further behind in their education. Many of these students are placed outside of the District of Columbia and are highly mobile. Consequently, they experience issues enrolling in school, obtaining transferrable credit, and receiving special education and related services. As a result, earning a high school diploma is far more difficult.
“The government of the District of Columbia has a responsibility to provide high-quality education to the youth who are in its care,” Grosso said. “The recommendations put forward by the working group push D.C. to better fulfill that responsibility by improving coordination between agencies and reducing barriers to educational achievement for these often-overlooked youth.”
Councilmembers Robert White, Brianne K. Nadeau, Brandon Todd, Kenyan McDuffie, Charles Allen, and Trayon White joined Grosso as co-introducers.
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