Income Driven Repayment Plan Proposed Regulations
The U.S. Department of Education has released proposed regulations to overhaul student loan repayment plans by creating a more affordable Income Driven Repayment (IDR) plan for borrowers.
Meaningful student loan debt relief must be provided to struggling borrowers to start addressing inequities that have disproportionately saddled borrowers of color with higher amounts of student debt, leading to hardships that stymie repayment of those loans and in turn greater rates of default.
Nine changemakers awarded $1 million in grants to continue improving outcomes for children of color in the U.S.
Today, nine innovative national leaders of color were awarded grants (over $110,000 each) to further their vital work to end disparities in education, build generational wealth, and reduce systemic barriers for children of color. This year’s grantees will use the funds to continue working on recruitment, retention, and support for educators of color, support for youth of color including workforce development, leadership training, mentorship, entrepreneurship, and other programs aimed at breaking cycles of poverty.
CTC Letter To Congress
On behalf of the 800 leaders of color in our network, Educational Leaders of Color (EdLoC), we write to urge Congress to expand the Child Tax Credit (CTC) before the end of the year. In the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), Congress temporarily expanded the CTC, paid it monthly, and made it fully refundable: it increased the maximum credit to $3,600 per child for children through age 5 and $3,000 for children aged 6 to 17; it allowed families to newly claim their 17-year-old children; and it made the credit fully available to families with children that lacked earnings in a year or had earnings that were too low.
Education Leaders of Color Urges Bold Approach to NAEP Score Recovery
Amid news of declining math and reading scores on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) following the pandemic, Krupa Desai, Chief Strategy Officer at Education Leader of Color (EdLoC), released the following statement:
“While we are concerned about declines in student performance following the pandemic, we urge stakeholders involved in the education ecosystem to take a holistic approach to recovery that accounts for a variety of student needs and circumstances.
LA-Based Black and Latina Leaders Seeking Thriving Communities of Color React to Racist LA City Council Leak
As Angelenos who represent a multi-racial network of leaders of color on a mission to ensure our diverse communities can thrive, we are deeply saddened and appalled. We condemn in the strongest of terms the disgusting racism that has shown up in the beliefs and political motivations of some of our city leaders.
EdLoC Reflections as New Supreme Court Term Begins
This week marks the start of the Supreme Court’s new term and the historic beginning of Justice KetanjiBrown Jackson’s tenure as the first-ever Black woman to hold a seat on the Court. As an organization dedicated to ensuring that young people of color have the support they need to thrive, capitalize on opportunities, and build generational wealth, Justice Jackson’s presence on the Court gives us hope in the possibilities our work can foster.
Education Leaders of Color Reacts to President Biden’s Student Loan Executive Order
Today, Education Leaders of Color (EdLoC) CEO Sharhonda Bossier released the following statement reacting to President Biden’s executive action to forgive $10,000 of debt for student loan borrowers.
Racial and economic inequities exacerbate the $1.7 trillion student debt crisis for borrowers of color, burdening them with student debt, greater difficulty repaying student loans, and greater rates of default.
EdLoC Submits Formal Comments on Proposed Federal Regulations to Improve Student Loan Relief Programs
Education Leaders of Color (EdLoC) has weighed in on the proposed federal regulations to improve student loan relief programs. The Biden-Harris Administration is proposing new regulations on various provisions that could benefit student loan borrowers, including students of color who are disproportionately negatively impacted by the student loan debt crisis.
Education Leaders of Color Applauds New Bill to Eliminate Child Hunger
Yesterday, the U.S. House Committee on Education and Labor took a major step forward in the effort to ensure that hunger is no longer a barrier to thriving for millions of children across the country by approving and advancing the Healthy Meals, Healthy Kids Act. The bill aims to address long-standing inequities in food security, exacerbated by the pandemic, which have disproportionately impacted the academic success of children of color.
EdLoC Signs On To Joint Proposal to Address Discrimination in Banking and Housing Systems
The first major overhaul of the Community Reinvestment Act of 1977 is being proposed by the three federal agencies charged with regulation of the statute. EdLoC is joining Prosperity Now and organizations across sectors to provide feedback that would strengthen and modernize regulations to avoid discriminatory or predatory practices in the nation's banking and housing systems.
EdLoC Signs on to Joint Letter to President Biden on the White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition and Health
On June 21, 2022, Education Leaders of Color (EdLoC) joined a diverse group of education, nutrition, and disabilities’ rights organizations and sent a letter to President Joe Biden calling for an additional topic - the role schools play in addressing student hunger - to be addressed at the upcoming White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition and Health.
Why EdLoC Honors Juneteenth
Juneteenth honors the date of June 19, 1865, when enslaved Black people in Galveston, TX—one of the deepest parts of the former Confederacy—finally learned that they were free, a full two and a half years after the Emancipation Proclamation had been issued. In essence, Juneteenth symbolizes the many ways that the promise of freedom, justice, and equality has been delayed for Black people.
Sharhonda Bossier: “The status quo is unacceptable.” Statement on mass shooting at Robb Elementary in Uvalde, Texas
I wept this morning on my walk. I cried for the lives we have lost to gun violence in this country. I cried for the 10-year-old version of myself who lost her first classmate to a shooting. I cried for the 19-year-old version of myself who had to bury her childhood best friend after he was shot and killed. I wailed from a place of deep helplessness and anger that our communities are again grieving the loss of loved ones whose lives were taken because of inaction on the part of our leaders.
Education Leaders of Color React to Biden’s Budget Request
Today, Education Leaders of Color (EdLoC) CEO, Sharhonda Bossier, released the following statement reacting to President Biden’s budget request for 2023:
“In his second budget to Congress, President Biden continues to take steps to reverse decades of inadequate funding for children and families by proposing significant increases in funding for education and workforce development, including expanding access to federal student aid to DACA recipients, to expand access to capital for small and minority-owned business, to strengthen our public health infrastructure, and to continue to increase the supply of affordable housing and support economic development in underserved communities.
MacKenzie Scott Strengthens EdloC with Injection of New Money, EdLoC CEO, Sharhonda Bossier, Releases Statement
Amid MacKenzie Scott’s announcement about her latest round of grantmaking, EdLoC CEO, Sharhonda Bossier, released the following statement about EdLoC’s inclusion among the list of Scott’s latest grantees.
“Education Leaders of Color is thrilled to be included among the impressive list of MacKenzie Scott’s most recent grantees. Our organization was founded to break through long-standing ideological divides and fill racial leadership gaps…… “
Education Leaders of Color Reacts to Federal Spending Bill
Education Leaders of Color (EdLoC) CEO, Sharhonda Bossier, released the following statement reacting to the $1.5 trillion spending bill Congress passed late last week:
“As leaders who understand the barriers preventing youth of color and their families from thriving because we have faced them in our own lives, we are disappointed that Congress’ $1.5 trillion dollar spending bill fails to provide adequate support for programs our communities desperately need.
$1M Awarded to Ten Projects Ending Disparities in Education and Building Generational Wealth
The Boulder Fund scales innovative solutions by leaders of color.
LOS ANGELES— Today, Education Leaders of Color (EdLoC) announced that it has committed $1 million in Boulder Fund grants to support twelve leaders making notable headway to mitigate barriers perpetuating racial disparities in American life. The Boulder Fund is EdLoC’s multi-million dollar grant program created to support initiatives developed by leaders of color, which are focused on improving life outcomes for children of color across the country.
EdLoC Condemns Anti-Asian Violence
For, if they take you in the morning, they will be coming for us that night.” – James Baldwin
EdLoC launched in the spring of 2016 just as this country was experiencing another uptick in state violence against Black and Latinx people. In that moment, our community of Black and Latinx educators boldly proclaimed that we were stepping off the sidelines and joining other members in our communities in the fight for racial, social, and economic justice – that we were no longer focused solely on what had been the traditional sphere of influence and responsibility of educators.
ED Group Partners with Bezos Family Foundation Program Students Rebuild to Catalyze Educational Change for Black and Latinx Youth
Education Leaders of Color (EdLoC) has partnered with the Bezos Family Foundation to bolster Black and Latinx-led efforts to improve school and life outcomes for children of color across the country. The partnership injects $200,000 through the foundation’s Students Rebuild Changemaker Challenge, into EdLoC programs supporting the development or expansion of solutions to some of the most urgent challenges keeping Black and Brown children from realizing their full potential.
National Education Group Focused on Black and Brown Communities Gets New CEO
Today, Education Leaders of Color (EdLoC) announced that Sharhonda Bossier will take over the role of CEO following the loss of her colleague and Founding CEO, Layla Avila, late last year.
Bossier said, “I’m honored to step into this role at such a critical moment for the education sector and the nation. As the country grapples with the combined challenges of COVID-19 and growing civil unrest, students of color are more vulnerable than they’ve been in decades.