Washington, DC – In May, Hispanic CREO’s grito hit Washington.  Using testimonies, direct mail, and even an opinion piece penned by CREO Vice President Maite Arce, Hispanic CREO hit the hill to ensure that parents have the tools they need to improve the quality of their children’s education.

First, a mailing was sent directly to targeted legislators with information on Hispanic CREO and urging legislators to strengthen Supplemental Education Services (SES) provisions under the No Child Left Behind Act.

Next, an op-ed piece was penned by Arce to illustrate our outrage regarding the lack of equal access for Hispanic students to quality education opportunities in America. This piece was picked up by 61 on-line publications the day after its release and we are still tracking media hits!

On May 16, CREO parents and Civil Rights Leaders testified in House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s dining room at the U.S. Capitol to address these issues. Parents shared their experiences with these services and called on leaders to ensure their support in strengthening these provisions.

Hosting the event were: The Honorable Buck McKeon, Ranking Member of the U.S. House Committee on Education and Labor; Juan Enrique Granados, Hispanic CREO Parent Advocate, Dallas, TX; Sonia Hernandez Rodriguez, Exec. Vice President, National Farm Workers Service Center & Honorary Chair of the Coalition for Access to Educational Resources; Dianne Piche, Executive Director, Citizen’s Commission on Civil Rights; The Honorable Gene Hickok, Former U.S. Deputy Secretary of Education; and State Senator Anthony Williams, D-PA; and of course, our own Maite. 

This is just the beginning of what Washington can expect as we pull together with our parents and affiliates to fight for the rights of Hispanic children.

Phoenix, AZ – Polled Arizona voters revealed substantial support for the state’s Individual School Tuition Organization Tax Credit Program – a program that opens the door to a better future for the state’s neediest children, according to a survey released May 15.

Of the 300 voters polled, 76 percent reported they support the Tuition Tax Credit Program. Through this program, taxpayers can receive a dollar-for-dollar tax credit for contributions to School Tuition Organizations (STOs).

“This research confirms once again that school choice is an important part of the lives of most Arizona citizens,” states Maite Arce, Vice President of Hispanic CREO. “Surveys in 2005, 2006 and now 2007, have consistently said the same thing: school choice is here to stay.”

The poll was conducted by Washington, D.C.-based Wilson Research Strategies. Press Release.

Denver, CO – For the second year in a row, Hispanic CREO and the Latin American Research and Service Agency (LARASA) have teamed up to provide a comprehensive education resource guide for parents in the Denver metro area. The guide is filled with information on how to register children in school, the rights and responsibilities of parents, the rights of immigrants to enroll in public school and most importantly, lists the school choice options available to parents and their children.  

The guide also includes a comprehensive list of public, private, and charter schools in the Denver metro area and information about supplemental services and special programs available in each school district.

Our Entravision (a Univision network affiliate) partner is helping CREO get the word out. Throughout May and June, Entravision will air news stories on parents who have successfully used the guide to choose the best school for their child and air public service announcements to provide parents with CREO’s toll-free number to call for a free copy of this valuable resource.

Miami, FL – Leaders from Hispanic CREO, the National Coalition of Latino Clergy  & Christian Leaders (CONLAMIC) and the Florida State Hispanic Chamber of Commerce have formed a coalition that will be busy over the summer developing relationships with key legislators to increase support for school choice intiatives and in informing families about the scholarship opportunities available to them through the CTC and McKay scholarship programs.

Leaders will continue their efforts to engage the Spanish media on the issue of education reform.

Austin, TX – School choice in Texas was CREO’s largest goal this year, however, unfortunately, we were not successful.  The Texas bill was drafted by CREO Chairman Robert Aguirre, and was designed as an urban voucher program for low- and lower-middle income families. Our work in Texas is not over and CREO will continue to educate and inform parents, students, and the community at large on the school choice issue. Despite not getting a bill passed this session, we are proud of all the grassroots and grasstops work that was done to push the message to the forefront.
 
CREO was a presence in Austin even before the session opened.  A Candlelight Vigil in December brought hundreds of children and their parents to the Capitol steps to bring light to our message.  In February, Hispanic CREO organized the largest school choice rally ever recorded in the movement in conjunction with the Texas Catholic Conference, Agudath Israel, the Black Alliance for Educational Options, CONLAMIC, the Council on Faith in Action (CONFIA), and Texans for School Choice.

The crowd of 6,000 brought 5,200 letters from home for their Legislators and personally hand delivered them along with strong messages of parental choice.  In addition, with the help of the Catholic Conference, CONLAMIC, Agudath Israel, CONFIA, Ministerios Evangelicos, and a group of African American ministers, CREO created Shepherds for Choice. This diverse group of faith leaders met with lobbyists, strategists, and Legislators in pursuit of broad, bipartisan support for school choice.  
 
A major part of the Texas effort revolved around telling the story of the privately-funded HORIZON program in San Antonio as the best test case in the country of the impact of broad school choice on a school district, on children and families, and on a community.

In addition to the HORIZON data, CREO issued a report in conjunction with the National Center for Policy Analysis and the Milton and Rose D. Friedman Foundation entitled “The High Cost of Failing to Reform Public Education in Texas.” Underwritten by the Friedman Foundation, the report details the high cost of Texas dropouts – $3,168 per person per year for the lifetime of the dropout. The report provided compelling and irrefutable data for Legislators.
 
CREO also took to the airwaves airing spots on the Univision Network in the Rio Grande Valley and in San Antonio highlighting the school choice issue and asking parents to lend their voice to the cause. Full-page ads also appeared in English and Spanish newspapers in these cities bringing attention to the lack of educational opportunities available to Hispanic children in Texas and urged parents to call their legislators and demand change for our children. CREO took outreach one step further by delivering a CREO message to each of the Texas Senators three times a week for six weeks! Each Senator and their chief of staff personally received information on school choice and the staggering statistics on Hispanic high school drop-out.  
 
On March 29, when the Senate Education Committee held a hearing on the school choice bill, parents from across Texas came and testified to plead their case for education equity and access. For the first time in a school choice hearing in Texas, the number of people registered at the hearing in favor of the issue outnumbered the opposition.

CREO's efforts in Texas this year constituted our most effective effort ever achieved. While unsuccessful in the end, the broad and diverse coalition that was forged is noteworthy in its possibilities for the future in Texas and elsewhere. This monumental coordination of forces and actions was a genuine example of CREO's principles of Capture, Educate, Motivate, and Mobilize.

Every hour that passes in America, more Hispanics are signing El Grito to guarantee that all parents have the freedom to choose the best school for their children. Please visit www.justicebychoice.org
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