EDUCA Radio Show Makes "The 5 Smartest Policies Enacted by American Cities in 2010" List

Alex Sanchez in the studio during a live show

I am very excited! I just got word that our EDUCA radio show made the Drum Major Institute for Public Policy’s list of the best policies of 2010.

The Drum Major Institute for Public Policy, based in New York City, is a non-partisan, non-profit think tank generating the ideas that fuel the progressive movement. Every year, the Institute releases a short list of the “best” and “worst” policies enacted by American cities.

Below is what they said about our integration and parent engagement strategy in this year’s “Five Smartest Policies Enacted by American Cities” list:

“The experts agree: parental involvement has strong positive effects on students' achievement in school. When parents are engaged with their child's education, attendance improves, grades and test scores go up, and graduation rates rise. But how can school districts involve parents who don't speak English? In Denver, where three in five students are Latino and many have parents with poor English skills, the school system has taken to the radio waves. Through an hour-long weekly program called "Educa" (educate) the Denver Public Schools connect with Spanish-speaking parents about school policies, events, and issues in public education. Parents can also call in with questions about their children's school and the education system. The first-of-its-kind program broadcasts on three popular Spanish-language radio stations and has more than doubled its audience -- to 54,200 unique listeners -- over just a few months. For engaging immigrant parents in a format that speaks to them, the Denver schools' multicultural outreach efforts come in loud in clear on our list of the best policies of 2010 (http://www.dmiblog.com/archives/2010/12/ten_best_and_worst_city_polici.html).”

I want to thank and congratulate everyone who has contributed to the success of this linguistically and culturally effective project – my radio team, members of the EDUCA advisory committee, all of our guest speakers and our community partners and sponsors.  A special shout-out also goes to Tom Boasberg, Amy Friedman and Michael Vaughn for their support and willingness to venture outside-the-box with innovative strategies.

Happy New Year!