#4 - Defending Public Education with Arnie Fege

Speaking of Kids...

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: [e-mail]

Twitter: @SpeakingOfKids, @BruceLesley and @First_Focus

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