We are Houston Latina Mothers. Here’s Our Vision for a Better HISD for All - Latinos for Education

By: Noelia Fadic, Monica Reyes and Laura Villalobos

We are three mothers with very different backgrounds and experiences, but a shared vision of what we want to see in Houston when it comes to the education of Latino students. 

One of us is from Bolivia, another from Mexico, and from Guatemala – yet we all chose to build a family in Houston and send our children to various schools across Houston ISD.  And this summer our lives became much more intertwined thanks to Familias Latinas por la Educación, a parent advocacy program that has truly transformed our lives.

Like many parents in Houston, and probably across the country, we always had many questions about our kids’ education, but navigating the education system to get answers is tougher than it seems.

For one of us, who has a child with special needs, I always needed to go above and beyond to ask about the accommodations schools provide, and how they worked to ensure my child was getting the same resources and instructions as those without special needs. 

For me, who lives in a mixed status household, my questions were always about how my immigration status might impact my child’s educational opportunities beyond high school. I wanted to make sure they knew they had a future in education, despite their immigrant background.

And for me, who chose to send my kids to the same schools I attended, I wanted to know how different their education would be from my own, since I grew up with the constant reminder that I didn’t go to the “good schools” that wealthy people send their kids to.

This program has given us the tools and resources to find these answers and advocate for our children.  We learned that as parents we are entitled to data, options, and having a seat at the table.

On the data: we learned about the state of Latino education across Houston, making sense of state testing results, and getting diversity data on teachers within a school, because all these things matter to the experience our children have within a school. 

And on parent power: we envisioned together the types of opportunities we want to see in our local schools, and trained each other on how to advocate for these changes at the school board level. And we are just getting started.

We present our family-led priorities for Houston ISD: 

1. Our families stand for better economic conditions and access to resources such as housing, food, school supplies (for example: computers, internet).
2. Our families stand for access to programs outside of school hours that support the critical social, emotional, cognitive, and academic development of children.
3. Our families stand for access to support resources and early access for learning disabilities.
4. Our families stand for a safe and healthy school environment, physical and aesthetic as well as the psychosocial climate and the culture of the school.
5. Our families stand for access to sufficient nutritious food in schools and at home for the physical and mental development of children.
6. Our families stand for access to high-quality pre-kindergarten classes for a child’s academic development.
7. Our families stand for access to efficient school leaders with years of experience to lead with an equity lens, create a welcoming culture, and provide quality instruction in class.
8. Our families stand for access to support staff who play a very important role in the overall function of schools. 
9. Our families stand for access to effective teachers, as a teacher can make a difference in a child’s development.
10. Our families stand for access to healthcare and the well-being of our children.

We recently presented our vision to the new Superintendent at Houston ISD, Millard House II, and two trustees, and hope they will take these recommendations into account. Over the next couple of months, we want other parents to learn about these priorities and join us in our movement to create equitable opportunities for all Latino children within Houston. We are Latina mothers united in our collective commitment to education equity, and con ganas we will not only make our voices heard, but we will make change happen.

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Noelia Fadic, Monica Reyes and Laura Villalobos are mothers to kids attending schools in Houston ISD and part of the founding class of Familias Latinos por la Educación, which seeks to engage parents in local parent-led advocacy.