Statewide Equity in Education Summit 2024

The Suburban Balance Equity and Social Advocacy Division aims to advance educational equity to improve student academic outcomes. Our team of parent advocates work diligently in their efforts to advocate for school districts to increase equitable policies and practices to ultimately eliminate disproportionate student outcomes. 

EQUITY RECOGNIZES THAT WE DON'T ALL START AT THE SAME PLACE! 

It recognizes that persistent disparities will not be solved without targeting certain opportunities and supports to individuals who start further behind or face additional barriers.  

In 2018, SB Founder & CEO, LaShawn Walker believed it was vitally important to advocate for students to achieve the equitable outcomes they deserve. This led to her decision to develop a team of powerful & passionate advocates for Equity in education to ensure the fight for Equity would become a top priority for Suburban Balance.  Today the Equity & Social Advocacy Division of Suburban Balance has established a reputation of rolling up our sleeves to bring school district superintendents, school board members and other district leaders to the table to bring about change. Suburban Balance now has an equity team comprised of 19 Equity advocates spread all across 7 school districts in Missouri and Kansas. 

ADVOCACY BACKGROUND: 

Advocating for students is woven into our organization’s DNA! Our advocacy work began in 2018 in Lees Summit, which is the district where the majority of SB families reside. When SB learned the equity plan was in jeopardy, we refused to sit idle while achievement gaps widened. Our CEO jumped into action and the rest is history. it was necessary to form this powerful team to ensure stakeholders voices were heard and our presence was felt! The collective efforts of our advocacy work ultimately led to a unanimous vote on the approval of the LSR7 unprecedented district equity plan. Equity advocates along with other parents continued to advocate for diversity training and after months of pressure that was applied, resulted in a 6-1 re-vote on district diversity training in 2019. 

MISSION: 

The SB Equity Team’s mission is to support our families in the fight for equity, to ensure families are informed, engaged and empowered and to ultimately hold school districts accountable to implement equitable policies to improves academic outcomes. 

Whether they are speaking at school board meetings advocating for educational equity, advocating for policy or legislative change, speaking to the media, working behind the scenes writing letters or organizing, mobilizing other parents or strategizing, they all have an important role to play and together with other parents and allies have and will continue to bring about needed change in school districts all across the metro and are prepared to hold districts accountable in the pursuit of making equity a reality for students! 

VOTER ENGAGEMENT & SCHOOL BOARD CANDIDATE FORUM: EMPOWERING OUR COMMUNITY THROUGH VOTER EDUCATION & ENGAGEMENT IS ONE OF SUBURBAN BALANCE’S TOP PRIORITIES. 

Suburban Balance believes it is important to bridge the community with candidates running for school board. That’s why SB continues to educate through our community wide school board Candidate forums. An informed voter is an empowered voter. The more we can educate, the better. It is crucial that we advocate for policy changes that support our communities. We also believe that voting is a fundamental right and we must exercise our right to vote in all elections.

SCHOOL BOARD ELECTIONS are consequential elections and therefore if advancements are going to be made on educational equity then we must educate ourselves on school board candidates who will be making those major educational decisions, we must also work to understand their platforms and consider candidates that align with your family’s values.  

To achieve voter education, engagement and increased turnout at the polls, Suburban Balance will host a variety of “IMPACT THE VOTE” RALLIES AND SCHOOL BOARD CANDIDATE FORUMS! 

Thanks for staying connected to the Equity & Social Advocacy Division! The support this Division extends to families is just one more great reason to get your family involved in a difference making non-profit organization like Suburban Balance!