ACTLA Statement in Support of Equity and Restorative Justice in Learning Assistance

 

Greetings ACTLA Members,

Your ACTLA Board is writing to you today in the context of a heartbreaking week of unrest and sorrow. Self-reflecting about our role in ending systemic racial oppression as citizens, educators, and learning assistance professionals, we would like to assert our vital role in student success, especially for students who have historically been underserved at our institutions. We have a responsibility and an opportunity to mitigate and reverse disproportionate impact, implement restorative justice, and create equity of learning outcomes for students at our colleges.

We assert the following:

  • ACTLA is a multicultural organization committed to anti-racist practices and policy revisions for a just and equitable society. Indigenous, black, and brown communities have been a target of a white supremacist system for over 400 years. Our current health crisis has unmasked racial discrimination against the Asian and Asian-American community. As educators, scholars, and community-minded people, we implore an end to archaic systems that do not empower students to prosper in the opportunity of education.
  • We must affirm trauma informed support of our students and the power of restorative justice in tutoring sessions. We have the ability to empower students to thrive in a safe and nurturing environment in our learning centers and the college/university at large. We need to be agents of change for student learning and provide everyone with hope and success in a more responsive world.
  • The oppression and denial of true freedom through education must be dismantled. This dismantling starts with us. Our individual and collective stories create a beautiful quilt that can make hearts warm and protect our collective souls.
  • We challenge each and every one of us to go deeper into our collective spirit and continue to create a dynamic and culturally proficient learning environment that can be replicated across all colleges and universities. Institutions across all civic sectors must change. We will lead with humility, expertise, and authenticity. Let’s get to work!

Most sincerely and in solidarity,

The ACTLA Board

 

What you can do right now:

 

 

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GET INVOLVED WITH LOCAL AND NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS

 

MENTAL HEALTH LINKS TO SUPPORT THE BLACK COMMUNITY