Email from Legal Aid of North Carolina

Welcome to the Right to Education Project (REP) Community Newsletter! We are Legal Aid of NC’s statewide education justice project. We hope to use this newsletter to share information about upcoming events and resources for parents and families, as well as tips on how to help your student feel successful and safe in school.

Please forward this newsletter to anyone that you think might be interested and encourage them to sign up to receive it here!

Para leer este boletín en español, ¡haga clic aquí!

Upcoming Events

Advocate For Your Student:

From Prevention to School-Based Grievances

This is a free webinar where members of the Right to Education Project team will discuss tips and tricks for advocating for your student in their school that do not require a lawyer.

Tuesday, 4/18/23

2:30-3:30 PM EST

This webinar will not be livestreamed or recorded so that participants can more freely ask questions, but all materials will be shared with anyone who registers even if they cannot attend.

Notes: Live interpretation in Spanish will be provided. All materials will be made available in English and Spanish. There will be time for attendees to ask questions after the presentation.

English Registration Link

Spanish Registration Link

Resource Spotlight

We are excited to share our new REP Parent Advocacy and Resource Guide.

This online resource highlights statewide and regional support opportunities for parents/guardians/caregivers of North Carolina children & youth. These opportunities provide support and guidance to families as they navigate the education, and related systems, that their children participate in.

Our vision is to ensure that all families get connected locally with people or groups that can maintain parent support, and to continue to build parent power in our communities.

Click the video below to watch a quick step-by-step tutorial on navigating the Parent Advocacy & Support Guide!

REP Staff Spotlight

This month we would like to highlight our phenomenal Social Work Team!

Katie Haberman,

MSW

REP Social Worker

Anna DePollo

Social Work Intern

Annie Davis

Social Work Intern

The social work team at REP supports students and families holistically alongside their education cases. If a family needs connections to other community resources or supports, the social work team works alongside them to ensure these connections are made.

REP's Tip of the Month!

"One of the first things I was taught in my advocacy career was that 'if it isn’t in writing, it didn’t happen.'"- Jen Story, REP Managing Attorney

REP recommends always asking for things in writing. Email is a great way to make your requests and share your concerns. Be sure you also have the responses to your communications documented in writing. If you have a phone or in-person conversation with someone from your child’s school about an issue they are having, ask that person to send you an email confirming what you talked about, or send one yourself.

Sample Language:

“Thank you for speaking with me on DATE about TOPIC. Just to summarize, we discussed and decided that SUMMARIZE.”

More Education Resources

Your gift provides legal help to our clients within the prohibitions and conditions enforced by the Legal Services Corporation (LSC). As an LSC funded organization, all non-LSC grants and contributions made to us are subject to restrictions in the Legal Services Corporation Act, 42 U.S.C. 2996 et seq. and LSC's appropriations. Learn more.