School board member named chair-elect of Council of Great City Schools

[aesop_image imgwidth=”500px” img=”http://www.signaltribunenewspaper.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/Williams-appointment-for-NEWS.jpg” offset=”-200px” credit=”Courtesy LBUSD” align=”center” lightbox=”on” caption=”Long Beach School Board Vice President Felton Williams (right) is working with the Council of the Great City Schools and the White House on an initiative to improve the achievement of students of color. Williams met President Barack Obama during the initiative’s launch at the White House this month.” captionposition=”center”] Long Beach will host the next annual fall conference of the Council of the Great City Schools, the nation’s primary coalition of urban school systems. The conference, expected to draw more than 1,000 education leaders from throughout the U.S., is scheduled for Oct. 7—11 and will shine a national spotlight on local schools, according to the Long Beach Unified School District (LBUSD), which is a long-time member of the Council and has been working with it and the White House on a concerted effort to improve the academic and social outcomes of boys and young men of color.
LBUSD was among 60 big-city public school districts from across the country to announce the education effort with President Barack Obama at the White House in July. The announcement included a pledge by the 60 school districts to implement a variety of strategies to support students of color from early childhood to graduation.
Representing LBUSD at the White House in July was Board of Education Vice President Felton Williams, who is secretary-treasurer of the Council of the Great City Schools. Williams is also working with a local committee to plan a Students of Color Town Hall Meeting in LBUSD next February.
The July pledge supports a White House Initiative called My Brother’s Keeper, a challenge issued in September by Obama. The President
challenged communities to implement coherent strategies for improving life outcomes of all young people regardless of who they are, where they come from or the circumstances into which they are born.
Source: LBUSD