Schooling Division, Congress Should Shield the Civil Rights of College students By means of Annual Knowledge Assortment ​​​​​​​

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Charmaine Riley, [email protected], 202.548.7166

WASHINGTON – Wade Henderson, Interim President and CEO of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, made the following statement after the Department of Education announced that the civil rights survey will take place in the 2021-2022 school year:

“As students, families and schools continue to grapple with the long-running challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, the civil rights community is grateful that the Department of Education has heard our calls and will conduct the US civil rights data collection next school year. These data are essential for protecting students and upholding their civil rights.

“Data is critical to ensuring equal educational opportunities – and must lead to real changes in policy and practice at school, district and federal levels. It is time to publish this compilation annually and provide Congress with the resources necessary to ensure this information is available to students, families, educators and policy makers. “

In December 2020, the Leadership Conference called on the Biden administration and Congress to double the size of the Civil Rights Bureau. In March 2021, the Leadership Conference and 29 organizations requested the Department of Education to conduct the survey to collect data on civil rights in the 2021 school year.

The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights is a coalition mandated by its diverse members from more than 220 national organizations to promote and protect the rights of all persons in the United States. The Leadership Conference works towards an America that corresponds to its ideals. More information about the Leadership Conference and its member organizations can be found at www.civilrights.org.

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