Public Advocates

A group of educators, staff and parents are suing the West Contra Costa Unified School District for failing to address poor building conditions, teacher vacancies and violating the rights of students, particularly Black, low-income and multilingual learners. The lawsuit, filed late Friday by civil rights law firm Public Advocates and pro bono counsel Munger, Tolles & Olson LLP, comes months after 48 Williams complaints were submitted to the district. It’s the first time a school district has been sued under the landmark Williams v. California settlement in 2004, which established the complaint process, the right to textbooks, clean, safe schools, and qualified teachers for all California public school students, said Karissa Provenza, Public Advocates attorney. 

🚆🗓️ Register for the next panel discussion in our Money Train series, happening on July 24 at noon on Zoom. We'll hear about what other states are doing to fund their transportation systems. RSVP here: https://lnkd.in/gZtwKHd6 #MoneyTrain #themoneytrain #Transportationfunding #T4MA #Transportationformassachusetts #TransportationforMA #Learningseries #Panel #paneldiscussion #Otherstates #Transportationfunding

The #BestOfEquityChat continues! Earlier this week, we heard from a dozen Season 4 guests about how researchers are impacting #racialequity. Next week, we will hear from practitioners about how they are affecting positive change for racial equity. We will feature insights from: Nancy Jodaitis from Immigrants Rising, James Kvaal from U.S. Department of Education, J. Luke Wood, PhD from California State University-Sacramento, Abigail Seldin from Scholarship America, Lisa Petrides from the Institute for the Study of Knowledge Management in Education (ISKME), James Walthers from National Council for Marketing & Public Relations, Jennifer Domagal-Goldman from ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge, Chuck Black and Abdullah Aljanabi from the Campus Vote Project, and Guillermo Mayer from Public Advocates... ...and hear from our #EquityChat hosts, Dr. Tammeil Gilkerson, Dr. Pamela Luster and Dr. Keith Curry. Join us on 7/24 at 5 pm PT on X/Twitter. Follow along by following @EquityAvengers, @DrTammeil, @IamKeithCurry and @DrPamLuster.

Direct enrollment significantly increases students’ chances of completing college-level courses and transferring to a four-year college. Check out this "Know Your Rights" infographic on #AB705 by Public Advocates: https://lnkd.in/gxc-Rke7

Join our team! Public Advocates is hiring an exempt, full-time Senior Legislative Counsel, K-12 Education, to collaboratively develop and implement statewide legislative, administrative, and budget policy advocacy to advance a racially and economically just public education system. Candidates should have at 7+ years of relevant policy, administrative, legislative or campaign experience or equivalent legal or advocacy experience ideally working on social policy issues, at the federal, state or local level—as well as a J.D. and California Bar Admission. The position is full-time (37.5 hours/week). The starting salary range for this role is $90,000-$120,000, dependent on relevant experience and internal equity considerations. Public Advocates now also offers a tax-advantaged Loan Repayment Assistance Program, which provides qualifying attorneys with up to $500/month to cover part or all of their eligible student loan principal and interest payments. This position has traditionally been based in our Sacramento office but we are flexible for the right candidate who has demonstrated willingness and ability to travel to Sacramento two or more times a month, especially during the legislative session. Learn more and apply at: https://lnkd.in/gFSw5pJG

Please help us in welcoming Public Advocates' newest team member, Maddy Van Engel! We are so excited to have Maddy on board as our new Senior Finance Manager. Welcome to Public Advocates, Maddy! 🙌

Like other transit agencies, AC Transit creates its schedules using the automated data that is generated from the buses’ GPS tracking systems. At AC Transit's June board meeting, ATU Local 192 bus operator after bus operator shared their experiences, providing information that can’t be captured in the GPS data, but is crucial to creating bus schedules that work for riders and operators. One operator explained the limited layover time drivers have to park the bus safely, answer questions from riders, use the bathroom, and load the bus. Another spoke of how they do not always have time to pull to the curb because they are behind schedule and the impact this has on riders, particularly those with accessibility or mobility issues. Many spoke of the stress of trying to meet impossible schedules, and the health impacts of avoiding water because they don’t have reliable bathroom breaks. Read a recap of the AC Transit June board meeting (written by our Senior Transportation Policy Advocate, Laurel Paget-Seekins) and about the solidarity between riders and bus operators at our blog: https://lnkd.in/gEeEPfep

UPDATE: APPLICATIONS HAVE CLOSED. THANK YOU! Last day to apply! Public Advocates seeks passionate racial and economic justice advocates to apply for project funding with us through the Equal Justice Works and/or Skadden post-graduate fellowship programs. We are welcoming fellowship applicants to work with our K-12 Local Powerbuilding Team in Southern California and are also open to project proposals in the areas of Housing Justice, Renters’ Rights, and Transportation Justice to work out of our San Francisco or Sacramento offices. Compensation for first-year attorneys at Public Advocates starts at $76,500 and is based on a step schedule. Applications are welcome immediately and due no later than Friday, June 28th at 5:00 pm PST. Learn more at: https://lnkd.in/gA_k8-CV

Join us in wishing a warm welcome to PA's 2024 legal interns! We are excited to host and support Emelia Martínez Brumbaugh, Shasun, Margarita, and Georgi—incredible advocates who will be supporting our Education Equity and Metropolitan Equity teams this summer. Welcome to Public Advocates Jubilee, Shasun, Margarita, and Georgi! 🙌⚖️

UPDATE: APPLICATIONS HAVE CLOSED. THANK YOU! One week left to apply! Public Advocates seeks passionate racial and economic justice advocates to apply for project funding with us through the Equal Justice Works and/or Skadden post-graduate fellowship programs. We are welcoming fellowship applicants to work with our K-12 Local Powerbuilding Team in Southern California and are also open to project proposals in the areas of Housing Justice, Renters’ Rights, and Transportation Justice to work out of our San Francisco or Sacramento offices. Compensation for first-year attorneys at Public Advocates starts at $76,500 and is based on a step schedule. Applications are welcome immediately and due no later than Friday, June 28th at 5:00 pm PST. Learn more at: https://lnkd.in/gA_k8-CV