The Future is Us - Vol. 1 Sept-Oct 2021

TFiU Newsletter, Vol. 1

Sept-Oct 2021

The Future is US exists to fight for Galveston youth through community voice so future generations can meet their full potential.

In Memoriam

Julenne Andrisee Faith Brown

October 25, 1985 - August 29, 2021

Julenne Brown was an original Youth and Parent Advisory Council Parent Lead for The Future is Us. She was dedicated and passionate in her pursuit for educational justice on Galveston Island. She was born and raised on the island and was a faithful follower of Christ.

She leaves behind her amazing daughter, Chaniya Brown, mother, Judy Brown, father, Jared Brandy, grandmother, Rose Brandy, siblings, Jac’qulinne Chinn, brothers, Zavian Brown and Jared Eamos Brandy, five aunts, three uncles and a host of nieces, nephews, cousins, other relatives, friends, and her God’s Kingdom and Restoration Ministries family.

She will deeply and constantly be missed by those whose lives she truly affected and made better.

Who WE Are.

TFiU Mission

The Future is US is an initiative designed to dismantle the school-to-prison pipeline by addressing the disproportionate classroom exclusionary actions against Black students compared to their White peers.

The Future is US (TFiU) is a Communities of Care grant funded by the Hogg Foundation for Mental Health to support efforts in transforming Galveston to be a community that supports the resilience and mental health, and of its children and youth of color and their families. Our area of focus is education as Black students in Galveston ISD are suspended three to six times more often than their peers. Why? Often because of implicit bias, exclusionary discipline practices, and policing in schools.

There too are community factors that influence a student’s success and treatment in school, and we have been engaging with the community in identifying what community conditions, practices, and policies perpetuate racial inequities in the education system. We have utilized THRIVE (Tool for Health Resilience in Vulnerable Populations) to understand if and how 12 social determinants of health conditions in Galveston influence the racial inequity in school across three categories: People, Opportunity, and Place.

Through our Difficult Conversations series (found on our Facebook page), we presented the Community Data we collected and asked the community which factors influence racial inequities in the school district for TFiU to begin exploring and making change. Over 300 Galvestonians shared their voices with us and identified these factors as high priority:

#1 Education: high quality, accessible education, and literacy for all ages that effectively serves all learners

#2 Social Networks & Trust: trusting relationships among community members

#3 Arts & Cultural Expression: abundance of places for cultural and artistic expression and participation

With the qualitative and quantitative data collected and continued collaboration with the school district and community members that have been excluded from these conversations, TFiU is developing implementation plans and policy recommendations to address these systemic inequities at the school and in the community.

TFiU is led and facilitated by a Youth and Parent Advisory Council (YPAC), Design Team, and Policy Task Force with ongoing technical support and assistance from the Hogg Foundation for Mental Health with the Family Service Center of Galveston County acting as the Authorized Organizational Representative (AOR). The YPAC is composed of community youth and parents involved in the Galveston Independent School District, providing insight and input on how the project is driven. The Design Team includes members from multiple Galveston organizations representing various sectors of social determinants of health. The Policy Task Force evaluates district and community policies and practices that influence and contribute to disproportionate disciplinary practices in Galveston Independent School District. Where do you see yourself on our team?

How Does Racism Impact Mental Health?

School is not only where a student learns about the world around them, but also where the student begins to form their identity and sense of self. Research has found that experiencing racial discrimination influences a student’s self-efficacy, their belief in their ability to affect future outcomes, with lower levels of self-efficacy being associated with drug use, aggression, and sexual risk-taking behaviors. The 2020-2021 Galveston County Youth Risk Survey results show that 45% of GISD students have reported experiencing discrimination, with Black students more likely to report racial bias as the cause. Exposure to racial discrimination in children has been consistently related to anxiety, depression, withdrawal, anger, aggression, and psychological distress, all of which increase during adolescence.

So what can we do?

Thanks to Causeway Galveston, social emotional learning (SEL) and mental health services are being increased and implemented on GISD campuses. Increasing SEL and mental health services aids in improving school climate, encourages normalizing discussions, discourages stigmatization, and increases access to mental health services, which is quite important as students are 21 times more likely to visit a school-based mental health service than a community mental health center.

However, we can do more. We need to listen to the experiences of our Black students. We have to change the environment and systems around the child that support racism and oppression. Change school discipline policies so that Black students are not pushed out through discretionary and exclusionary discipline practice. We have to think critically about the way systems around us support oppression. We need to become advocates and civically engaged for our student’s futures.

[Click for full article]

Keeping Students In School!

TFiU is building a School Supply Mutual Aid

We want students to always feel prepared and ready for school. With Communities in Schools, we are building a School Supply Mutual Aid so students will always have access to the school supplies and clothes they need to empower them to learn. With Galveston's Own Farmer's Market, on the last Sunday of each month, community members are able to donate school supplies! Family Service Center offices too are donation locations and we hope to expand to other locations in the community!

Donate School Supplies!

Request School Supplies

Policy Implementation

By evaluating district and community policies and practices that contribute to the disproportionate disciplinary practices in Galveston Independent School District, the Policy Task Force and YPAC has created a Policy Brief providing solutions. These solutions are:

Ban willful defiance suspensions
Implement restorative practices
Establish a diverse review committee, including community members
Improve Kindergarten Readiness

[Click here to read and share TFiU Poicy Brief]

"It Takes a Village" Back to School Event

On August 22nd, local hair stylists, barbers, manicurists, and community organizations, along with TFU, came together for the "It Takes a Village" Back To School Event. The local youth were able to get fresh, first day back-to-school hairstyles, all the school supplies they'd need, and breakfast and lunch. Galveston staples Chef Mary Bass and Mario's Seawall Italian Restaurant provided lunches for the students and parents.

Thanks and congratulations are due to the participating partners for providing the space for the event, providing hair & nail services, volunteering to set up and distribute school supplies and essentials: Noche' Berry's Salon, Communities In Schools, Joan Bertino, Rosalyn Jackson, Club 68 Galveston, Salon J'Lynae, Jonesia Melton, Lu Beana, Big Brothers Big Sisters Gulf Coast, Nia Cultural Center, Inc., Sue Johnson, Parent Lead Advocate Latrina Jones, Sheron Warren, Mona Benson, Ebony Webb, Ashley Stewart, The Baby Stewart Foundation, Sharon Lewis, and Youth Lead Advocate Toby Agnew.

140+ students received school supplies and 70+ students got their hair braided, cut, and styled to prepare them for their first day of school. TFiU coordinators and Lead Advocates spoke with community members about TFiU's mission and gifted community members with 25 TFiU face masks, TFiU bookmarks, and the QR code to complete our qualitative data survey. Also, Community members were provided with free transportation to the event, some coming from the mainland to attend. The event was a massive success and would not have been possible without the Galveston community.

Want to help out at future community events?

New School Year 2020-2021 Classroom Exclusion Data!

"Local data suggest downsizing GISD’s discipline population and reduction in prevalence of exclusionary discipline (i.e., removing the student from the classroom) continued through SY21. However, the discipline gap between Black and Non-Black students grew wider: Black students received classroom removal as discipline 4.1 times more often than their Non-Black peers during SY21.

Black students had lower prevalence of attaining zero classroom removals for discipline in SY21 than did their Non-Black peers that were

similarly situated by age, gender, eligibility for accommodations of physical or mental health status that hinder access to or success in free

public education, home language, and family economic situation."

[Click for full report]

You're on your phone anyway...

Follow these accounts for continued education and exposure!

Antiracism Daily

Vision Galveston

Culturally Competent Social Emotional Learning (SEL)

The School-to-Prison Pipeline

There are lots of ways you can make a difference in the community!

Donate school supplies at Galveston's Own Farmer's Market the last Sunday of the month!
Take our Survey (QR Code below) and let us know what you think will make change in the school district?
Join US! at TFiU monthly Open House.
Attend Movie Nights (TBD) and other awareness events!