#4 - Defending Public Education with Arnie Fege

<p>In this episode, our hosts Bruce Lesley and Messellech “Selley” Looby chat with children’s activist Arnold “Arnie” Fege about the importance of defending public education against attacks both past and present. As a longtime teacher, principal, superintendent and now president of Public Advocacy for Kids (PAK), a national organization devoted to education and child advocacy, Arne brings a thorough perspective to education policy and practice. Arne champions parental engagement, but challenges the motives of so-called “parental rights” groups who want to privatize public education, ban books, and minimize the voices of LGBTQ+ students and students of color. Arnie, who worked with Robert F. Kennedy and served as school desegregation director in Michigan, traces the roots of this movement all the way back to <em>Brown v. Board of Education </em>and<em> </em>efforts to maintain racial segregation in schools.</p><br><p>Learn more about the far-right’s attempts to dismantle public education:</p><br><p>Newsletter: <a href="https://firstfocus.org/alliance-for-student-liberty" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Alliance for Student Liberty</a>, By Lily Klam&nbsp;</p><p>Blog:<a href="https://brucelesley.substack.com/p/why-education-is-a-childrens-issue-and-a-matter-of-child-rights-a5a5aea65015ducation-is-a-childrens-issue-and-a-matter-of-child-rights-a5a5aea65015" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> Why Education Is a Children’s Issue and a Matter of Child Rights</a>, By Bruce Lesley&nbsp;</p><p>Publication: <a href="https://firstfocus.org/resources/report/childrens-budget-2023" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Children’s Budget 2023</em> </a>by First Focus on Children</p><br><p>Be sure to check out Arnold Fege’s <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Arnold-Fege" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">publications</a> and follow him on <a href="https://twitter.com/advocacy_kids" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Twitter</a>.&nbsp;</p><br><p>To join the conversation, follow First Focus on Children on<a href="https://www.instagram.com/first_focus/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> Instagram</a>,<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/company/first-focus/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> LinkedIn</a>, and<a href="https://twitter.com/First_Focus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> Twitter</a>. Connect with our hosts and tell us what you would like to hear on the podcast at:</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Email: [email protected]</p><p>Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/SpeakingOfKids" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@SpeakingOfKids</a>,<a href="https://twitter.com/BruceLesley" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> @BruceLesley</a> and<a href="https://twitter.com/First_Focus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> @First_Focus</a></p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

Episode 4 of the Speaking of Kids... podcast, hosted by First Focus on Children, titled "#4 - Defending Public Education with Arnie Fege" was published on November 15, 2023 and runs 47 minutes.

November 15, 2023 ·47m · Speaking of Kids...

Summary

In this episode, our hosts Bruce Lesley and Messellech “Selley” Looby chat with children’s activist Arnold “Arnie” Fege about the importance of defending public education against attacks both past and present. As a longtime teacher, principal, superintendent and now president of Public Advocacy for Kids (PAK), a national organization devoted to education and child advocacy, Arne brings a thorough perspective to education policy and practice. Arne champions parental engagement, but challenges the motives of so-called “parental rights” groups who want to privatize public education, ban books, and minimize the voices of LGBTQ+ students and students of color. Arnie, who worked with Robert F. Kennedy and served as school desegregation director in Michigan, traces the roots of this movement all the way back to Brown v. Board of Education and efforts to maintain racial segregation in schools. Learn more about the far-right’s attempts to dismantle public education: Newsletter: The Alliance for Student Liberty, By Lily Klam  Blog: Why Education Is a Children’s Issue and a Matter of Child Rights, By Bruce Lesley  Publication: Children’s Budget 2023 by First Focus on Children Be sure to check out Arnold Fege’s publications and follow him on Twitter.  To join the conversation, follow First Focus on Children on Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter. Connect with our hosts and tell us what you would like to hear on the podcast at:   Email: [email protected] Twitter: @SpeakingOfKids, @BruceLesley and @First_Focus Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode Description