Every day, Latinos contribute to Kansas City’s shared prosperity. However, time and again, these contributions do not translate into long-term generational achievement. When we launched the Latinx Education Collaborative (LEC) in 2018, our vision was to increase the representation of Latinx education professionals in K-12.
At the same time, we saw an opportunity to further expand our reach and empower our community through political engagement and advocacy. We started Revolución Educativa, an affiliated 501(c)(4) organization, because we believe that in order to truly effect positive change and improve education outcomes, we must come together and give our communities the tools, resources and supports needed to build sustained collective power in Kansas City and beyond.
As parents, it’s our responsibility to instill values and principles in our children. Education begins at home and is expanded at school, and it’s critical that we get involved in our children’s educational experience. As Latino parents, oftentimes we have a language barrier, but we can always ask for help! I believe the academic and social education of our children is our responsibility.
Irma Catalán García Tweet
While improvements to high school completion among Latinos are evident, graduation rates for Latinos still trail the national average.
In the United States, there are three times as many Latino students as there are teachers. In Kansas City, just 1% of teachers identify as Latinx.
For Latinos, despite being the fastest growing subgroup in nearly every school in Kansas City Public School System (KCPSS), there is still a disproportionate underrepresentation at the governance level.