Diana’s Story

Diana with her children

Diana is an Aurora Public Schools (APS) graduate and now has two children of her own. Her daughter currently attends APS and her son will begin soon. Like ALL families, she wants the best education possible for her children. However, on average only about 65% of students in Aurora Public Schools graduate from high school.

When families have the tools and skills they need to support their children’s education at home, these graduation rates can and will improve. Diana attended a RISE workshop in 2014 to learn about the opportunity gap that exists in our public education system. When families know about educational inequity, they are better equipped to advocate for their children. Next, Diana joined a coalition to work for at-home learning resources for preschool students. Coalition members wanted age appropriate tools to support their children’s learning at home. Coalition members met with teachers, school leaders, and district officials until their voices were heard.

Veronica Palmer (L) and Diana meet U.S. Secretary of Education John King at an education conference in New York City.

Diana and the family-led preschool coalition WON their policy campaign! Preschool families now have a policy in place to ensure they have access to learning resources during the school year and Summer to support their children’s education at home. This policy impacts over 700 preschool students in Aurora and thousands more in the years to come.

Hold on! Diana isn’t done yet! Next, she traveled to New York City with RISE CEO Veronica Palmer, to speak with U.S. Secretary of Education, John King, about the importance of family engagement and leadership in the public school system. Diana is one example of a passionate, engaged parent and at RISE we know many, many more.

We work everyday to ensure that individual’s like Diana have the knowledge, tools, and skills they need to be their children’s number one teacher and advocate.