Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 286 BOCNEWS.com OCTOBER 2016 A Godly Life Matters We can declare a lifestyle con- stitutional and govern behav- ior to some degree with laws and rules. We can also assign conse- quences and punishment but we cannot legislate morals and values. It is a lack of wisdom to promote passion before principles. We can make up slogans and terms but unless we love our Creator, selves and others, what we chant, quote, say or write will just be empty words. Black lives won’t matter a whole lot until Blacks start respecting themselves. There’s too much Black on Black crime – it needs to stop! Our priori- ties need to change. Education has to be important to us. Our kids need to go to school and when they do - they need to do their very best. Can we stop being promiscuous and living together? God desires a man and a woman to be mar- ried, then have kids. Let’s stop the alcohol, drugs, crime, prostitution and rape in our communities. Can we stop calling women Ho’s and B’s? Can we stop hanging out with those that do and stop listening to songs that do? And please stop using the N word. We’ve heard all this before and we know the statistics yet we refuse to change. It may not be easy in some cases but we can do better. THE ONLY LIFE THAT MATTERS IS A GODLY LIFE. Not a Black life, not white, not brown, not red or yellow but a godly life in Jesus Christ, saved, sanctified and justified by His blood. America needs a revival and we have a choice to make as individu- als and as a country. It is sad to see the nosedive we’re taking. We could stand together for all the good our flag represents and help the fatherless, the homeless and the hungry. The NBA and the NCAA have decided to “take” events out of North Carolina. Maybe sports fans should stop buying tickets, jerseys and shoes. It’s all about money and flat out rebellion against God. He’s already given instructions in the Bible (the owner’s manual), on the issue. We simply need to read it, believe it and obey it. If we don’t start approaching our problems from a godly perspective, God will address the confusion. Trust me, some of us will not like His answers or actions. Committees, companies, corpo- rations, councils, courts, depart- ments, districts, leagues, nations, organizations and stores cannot hide behind group decisions or pol- icies. God hears, knows and sees everybody, everything all the time, everywhere – even in the dark. If you are not living a godly life, start right now. Ask Jesus to come into your heart and save you. Ask Him to forgive your sins, and deliver you from bad thoughts and habits. Give and forgive. Get a good Bible, study it every day and attend a Bible teaching church. Pray to the true and living God, seek Him as never before. He loves you so much and wants to help you live godly. DPS Responds to Bailey Report Last month community members and staff from Denver Public Schools (DPS) came together to dis- cuss the findings of the Bailey report at the Colorado Black Round Table (CBRT) monthly meeting. The report was commissioned by DPS earlier this year after hearing concerns from black educators about how they and their students are treated in the district (Wright, 2016). The study is the first of its kind in Denver and other Colorado districts with the purpose of capturing the experiences of African-American teachers in a school district that acknowledges a history of racism (Wright, 2016). The 82-page report written by Dr. Sharon Bailey, a former DPS school board member found that many feel isolated within the district and see a dramatic difference in how black children are handled in and out of the classroom compared to their white counterparts (Wright, 2016). During the time frame of April through August of 2016, Dr. Bailey spoke with 70 teachers and admin- istrators who ranged in age from 26 to 74 (Wright, 2016). Some educators had more than 30 years of experi- ence, while others were finishing their very first year working in edu- cation. Major takeaways of the report included: ■ ■ The continuous struggle to hire and support African American teachers. ■ ■ Lack of access to culturally rel- evant and high rigor classes and programs for black students. ■ ■ Disproportionately more suspen- sions and discipline of black stu- dents. In response to the Bailey report and closing the achievement gap for black students and educators, the DPS Board of Education and Superintendent have… ■ ■ Made students of color, English language learners, students with disabilities a priority in the dis- trict’s Denver Plan 2020 goal of closing the Opportunity Gap. ■ ■ Commissioned an African American Equity Task Force which will be led by a steer- ing committee and five work- ing groups with the charge of developing an equity agreement with the hope of creating recom- mendations that may have both policy and practice implications. The group will be made up of both community members and district employees, and the com- mittee will be expected to make recommendations to the district. Applications from the community will be accepted until Wednesday, October 12th. More information as well as links to the full report and the application form can be found at http://celt.dpsk12.org/ equity-inclusion/african-ameri- can-equity-task-force/. ■ ■ Hired Allen Smith, a DPS vet- eran administrator as Associate Chief of the Culture, Equity 7 Leadership Team and Eddie Cohen as the Superintendents’ Chief of Staff. ■ ■ Committed to listening to the community and restoring a com- mitment to education. Next steps for DPS include: ■ ■ Mandatory culturally responsive training for new teachers for the 2016-2017 school year. ■ ■ Host open forums where com- munity members will have the opportunity to speak with Dr. Bailey about the report and share their own experiences with preju- dices in the school district. ■ ■ Identify members for the African American Equity Task Force. According to Bill Richardson, “We cannot accomplish all that we need to do without working together”. Get involved today and help ensure "Every Child Succeeds” in DPS. Opportunities to get involved: ■ ■ CBRT Black Community Get Out The Vote (GOTV), October 14th – October 16th ■ ■ Denver Public Schools ED Talks Dr. Jawanza Kunjufu Educating African American Males Thursday, October 27th 5:00 – 7:30 pm You can also visit: celt.dpsk12.org/equity-inclusion/ for more info on upcoming events. To read the Bailey report in its entirety visit: hr.dpsk12.org/wp-content/ uploads/2016/07/Bailey-Final- Report.pdf. By Dwayne Burris By Maya Wheeler Dwayne Burris Maya Wheeler EDUCATION