On March 22nd, members of WEC’s FACES team attended the Nellie Mae Education Foundation’s (NMEF) Advancing Community-School Partnerships Conference in Norwood, MA.
The one-day in-person event focused on elevating the collective efforts of NMEF’s community of practice members who are working to advance community-school partnerships for racial equity in education across the region. The diverse group included educators, leaders, families, students, and community partners.
Attendees engaged in interactive learning experiences, reflection, and celebrated their shared progress together, fostering new relationships to help support the work being done at each of their organizations.
"The Nellie Mae Conference was an incredibly eye-opening experience: seeing the challenges, obstacles, and radical and progressive actions taken distinctly affecting school districts, families, and communities - for better and for worse,” said Dina Tedeschi, member of the FACES Team at WEC. “As many improvements and strides WPS has made over the last few years, I was reminded that it is critical for caregivers and communities to stay focused on advocacy and diligently attentive to all that impacts our schools, our educators, and most importantly, our students. It was also a wonderful opportunity to connect with fellow WEC colleagues, and build upon new relationships."
More about the FACES Team at WEC
The FACES Team works to involve the parents of Worcester Public School students and community members in the advocacy efforts and events of the Worcester Education Equity Roundtable. They play a pivotal role in fostering meaningful partnerships between families, the community, the Roundtable, WEC, and WPS by helping to facilitate regular parent meetings and educational events, sharing pertinent information and resources, and developing and nurturing partnerships with local organizations, leaders, and businesses to broaden equitable access to opportunities for all WPS students and families.
To contact the FACES Team, please email Julia Kilgore, Senior Deputy Director, at jkilgore@wecollaborative.org.
