February 2024 BRIGHT Update
The annual research process is off to a great start. Check out this update from our two busy research committees!
READING ACHIEVEMENT UPDATE
On February 2nd, BRIGHT’s Education Research Committee met with representatives from Brevard Public Schools: Tara Harris, Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum and Instruction, and Dr. Wendy Smith, Director of Curriculum and Instruction for Elementary Programs.
We learned that, thanks to our persistence, Brevard Public Schools have been investing in training teachers on the sequential elements of reading instruction, as backed by the science of reading. These two special trainings were offered outside of the usual school schedule. 120 teachers from our 20 lowest performing schools participated in the first program and 75 teachers who were invited from all schools took part in the second opportunity. While this is cause for celebration, we will need to work with the school system to ensure these efforts continue, because the grant funding that made each of these trainings available are coming to an end soon, along with additional grants for academic support like third grade summer reading camp.
On February 12th, the Education Committee met with national experts in reading achievement: Doug Carnine, a scholar who has researched and advocated for improved education for vulnerable children, and Louise Dechovitz, Co-Founder of the Illinois Early Literacy Coalition. In this meeting, we learned that Science of Reading is not a method or instructional tool but a body of research compiled over five decades, studying the most effective instructional techniques for teaching reading. We also learned that few school systems are using instructional methods that are scientifically shown to be effective. Dr. Carnine’s research suggests that 50% of children in the US are not learning in effective environments through their schools. Based on his experiences of drastically improving reaching performance in Texas and California, one of the most critical things we need to do is get training backed by the science of reading for our administrators in charge so that they can offer multi-tiered levels of support for teachers. Administrators need to be able to look at reading achievement statistics with each teacher and help provide individualized support for addressing their students’ unique needs.
AFFORDABLE HOUSING UPDATE
BRIGHT members know that affordable housing is an urgent crisis in our community, and often the most vulnerable are renters, who typically have lower household incomes and whose costs can skyrocket with annual rent increases. 25% of all Brevard County renter households, more than 13,000 families, are paying more than half their income on rent. This means trade offs like not having the money necessary for medical care and groceries. Homelessness in our community has become so rampant that there are even school bus stops at local parks where families are living in the woods.
On January 18, BRIGHT’s Affordable Housing Research Committee joined members of FAITH and ICARE for a Workshop on Affordable Housing with the Center for Community Change. There, we learned about how communities across the country are waking their local leadership up to the urgency of the housing crisis through creative storytelling and compelling messaging. We need to communicate our vision to our public officials at this year’s Action Assembly on Monday, April 15th: We believe that Brevard County would be a better place to live if everyone could afford stable housing. Our community believes that all children deserve a roof over their head and a safe place to live. When families have a safe place to sleep, their children can thrive in school. With dependable housing, seniors can thrive in their golden years. We need policies that ensure housing is within reach for everyone!
We are excited to announce that we are meeting with Ian Golden, Director of Housing and Human Services; Jim Liesenfelt, Assistant County Manager; and Juanita Jackson, Housing and Human Services Deputy Director on Wednesday, March 6th.
We are currently working to schedule research meetings with Frank Abbate, County Manager, and Shawn Wilson, CEO of Blue Sky Communities, a St. Petersburg-based affordable housing developer.
GET INVOLVED IN THE RESEARCH
To join the education or affordable housing research committee, please contact your community organizer: Brittany Pendergrass (brittany@thedartcenter.org) or Rev. Caitlin White (caitlin@thedartcenter.org). We need your insights and perspective to help shape our community into a better, BRIGHTer Brevard County!
LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT
We are also excited to report that several BRIGHT clergy attended the annual DART Clergy Conference in Orlando February 6-8th. Rev. Dr. Margaret Aymer, Dean of Faculty at Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary, led the conference in a series of text studies of upcoming lectionary passages, teaching us to better read Mark’s gospel from the perspective of the poor and marginalized. We appreciated hearing inspiring sermons from clergy working for justice in communities all across the county as well as hopeful news from our colleagues in other cities. When we see the cumulative impact of justice ministries near and far, we see that progress will be made if we persist in our work for change!
