After conducting a survey, administrators at Carroll T. Welch Elementary School in the Clint Independent School District found that about a quarter of its students felt they did not 鈥渇it in鈥� at school.

鈥淭here’s some students that feel like they have to be different. Like, 鈥業 can’t be my true self because of what (other students) might say about me,鈥欌�� said Daisy Garcia, principal of the school in Horizon City.

Now she hopes to create a more welcoming and affirming environment for them through the El Paso School Design Collaborative, which aims to reimagine how schools can better serve students and communities.

As part of the 10-month program which started in May, schools were tasked with identifying an issue at their campus and coming up with a plan to address it with the help of experts from Transcend, a nonprofit with the goal of improving education systems in the U.S. Out of the dozens of schools from across El Paso that applied to be part of the program, eight were selected.

鈥淥ur vision is to help young people learn in ways that enable them to thrive in and transform the world. And the way that we do that is by supporting communities to create and spread extraordinary equitable learning environments,鈥� said Transcend Managing Partner Dottie Smith.

The program was brought together by the Council on Regional Economic Expansion and Educational Development, or CREEED, a nonprofit that aims to improve academic performance in El Paso, and the El Paso Community Foundation, a nonprofit that funds initiatives in health, education, human services and more throughout the city.

鈥淭he broad stroke idealistic goal is for there to be a systemic change in how schools approach school design,鈥� Vice President of Operations for the Community Foundation Stephanie Otero told El Paso Matters. 鈥淲e hope that each school in our region will have a student centered model where student voice is at the core of decision making.鈥�

With Transcend at their side, each of the participating schools set out to form teams of teachers, administrators and parents tasked with finding out how to improve their campuses. While the teams work directly with students, experts at Transcend help administrators conduct surveys, process data and provide them with examples of other schools that have centered student well-being in their education model.

鈥�(We鈥檙e) deepening their understanding of the research and science, and what their young people are saying they want,鈥� Smith said.

Some schools like the East Side鈥檚 O’Shea Keleher Whole Child Academy in the Socorro Independent School District included two fifth grade students, counselors and the school nurse in their redesign team to get their input on how to improve their campus.

Others talked to students to get their perspective.

Daisy Garcia said her team at Welch Elementary interviewed 75 of the school鈥檚 700-plus pupils from all walks of life, ranging from Spanish speakers to at-risk students to get their input.

鈥淲e wanted to make sure we had a really big pool of who we interviewed,鈥� Daisy Garcia said. 鈥淲e didn’t want just high achieving students who we know feel loved and they feel like they have leadership skills.鈥�

Many of the schools in the collaborative program focused on , also known as SEL, which aims to help students understand their emotions and build social skills as a way to improve educational outcomes.

Silvestre and Carolina Reyes Elementary in the Canutillo Independent School District and O’Shea Keleher put an emphasis on the social part of SEL, hoping to improve the way students connect with one another.

鈥淥ne of the things that we’ve found is that our students feel very well connected to the adults in the building, but many of them are still struggling with having that peer to peer interaction,鈥� said O’Shea Keleher Principal Laura Garcia. 鈥淪o we’re trying to find the root of that problem and then help give them tools to interact with their peers in a very positive manner.鈥�

While educators say students were already struggling to connect before the pandemic, lockdowns exacerbated the issue and were especially hard on younger students.

鈥淭here were a lot of skills that we lost, as far as interaction between our kids. It was problematic at all levels, but I think our babies in pre-K through first (grade) never learned those skills through the pandemic,鈥� said Reyes Elementary Principal Jessica Melendez-Carrillo.

After conducting research and learning about student鈥檚 needs the teams can move on to the 鈥渆nvisioning鈥� stage to make plans to address the issues they identified.

Melendez-Carrillo said her team at the Upper Valley school has been looking into implementing 鈥渕orning circles鈥� where students can have discussions, resolve conflicts and connect at the start of the day. She said the team is currently brainstorming and learning from other schools who have implemented these circles to see what that will look like.

鈥淲e’re collaborating, we’re thinking, we’re revisiting our protocols that we currently have and seeing how can we improve and make them better?鈥� Melendez-Carrillo said.

The team at Welch Elementary has looked into implementing a similar concept they call 鈥渢alk circles鈥� that allow teachers and students to have conversations on an equal playing field in the hopes of encouraging children to be themselves at school.

鈥淲hen they do the circles in the morning the teachers are going to participate just like the students so there’s not any kind of power or authority there. Everyone has the same type of authority and it goes back to that feeling of belonging and having a voice,鈥� Daisy Garcia said.

Laura Garcia said the team at O’Shea Keleher is still gathering data and working with Transcend on creating a parent survey before they plan their next move.

Once the teams have finalized their plans, Smith said Transcend will help implement them, evaluate their success and start the process all over again.

鈥淲e take schools through this to help them create a model that will match their vision,鈥� Smith said.

In the end, the school leaders taking part in the collaborative program hope it helps improve their student’s lives and prepares them for the future.

鈥淚 want to ensure that every one of our students who we send to middle school has that strong sense of self and confidence that they can be whoever they want without worrying about being judged,鈥� Laura Garcia said.

CREEED鈥檚 Choose to Excel Director Nadia Tellez said the program aims to help students succeed beyond school.

鈥淲e鈥檙e excited to support an initial group of eight schools to explore new models of student success that ensure students not only can go on and succeed in college, but that they鈥檙e prepared to succeed in our workforce and in their local communities,鈥� she said.

Other schools involved in the program include Vista Del Sol Environmental Science Academy, Jose H. Damian Elementary, Gonzalo and Sofia Garcia Elementary, Jose J. Alderete Middle School and the Canutillo Middle School STEAM Academy.

Smith said that once this first cohort has completed the 10-month program, Transcend hopes to continue working with them and expand to other schools throughout El Paso.

Disclosure: The Council on Regional Economic Expansion and Educational Development and El Paso Community Foundation are financial supporters of El Paso Matters. Financial supporters play no role in El Paso Matters鈥� journalism. The news organization鈥檚 policy on editorial independence can be found .

This first appeared on and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.

Girls will soon be able to access period products for free in Ohio school bathrooms.

The state鈥檚 new operating budget includes a $5 million appropriation for the current fiscal year to install dispensers that will provide free period products in schools that enroll girls in grades 6-12. The bill also allows schools to offer free period products to students younger than sixth grade if they so choose.

鈥淭here are cheers all across the state right now from women and girls who are going to be so excited to find out in the future girls will be able to access period products at no costs in their schools,鈥� Senate Minority Leader Nickie J. Antonio, D-Lakewood, said Wednesday afternoon during a press conference.

The budget allocates up to $2 million in fiscal year 2024 for public, non-public and charter schools to install dispensers for feminine hygiene products in each of their buildings. It also provide $3 million toward purchasing the products.

鈥淲e have regulated the provision of toilet paper and paper towels in public restrooms, so too we should do the same for menstrual products,鈥� Antonio said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 unhygienic and a danger actually to one鈥檚 health not to have access to menstrual products, so just like toilet paper, we need to have free and accessible access.鈥�

Twenty-three other states have , including Alabama, California, Illinois and Maryland.

Missing school

Nearly because they don鈥檛 have access to period products.

鈥淚t really gets in the way of them being able to rise to their fullest potential,鈥� Antonio said. 鈥淲hen students lack access to period products, they face barriers and may avoid going out in public while wearing period stained clothing in public without the necessary sanctuary products.鈥�

Girls shouldn鈥檛 have to choose between going to school and being able to purchase period products, said State Senator Stephanie Kunze, R-Dublin.

鈥淢issing a school day or missing partial school days over time is a really significant loss of educational time for girls,鈥� she said.

Lawmakers and advocates expect to see girls attendance in schools improve as a result of Ohio鈥檚 budget provision.

School attendance at a New York City high school went up providing free tampons and pads in bathrooms.

Period poverty

About two-thirds of low-income women could not afford menstrual products at some point, according to research published in the .

One in six women and girls between the ages of 12 to 44 are below the federal poverty line in Ohio, said Hamilton County Commissioner Denise Driehaus. Ohio鈥檚 federal poverty line for .

鈥淭ranslation: they can鈥檛 always afford period products,鈥� she said

This budget provision aims to reduce period poverty.

鈥淚t鈥檚 going to be so important to those students in those schools to be able to have the best education they can,鈥� Driehaus said.

In an effort to cut costs, some women use the same period products for too long without changing it.

鈥淭hat鈥檚 a health risk,鈥� she said. 鈥淚f they are accessible products in school bathrooms, that would not be an issue. You go in and get the product and away you go.鈥�

The average women in the throughout her lifetime, according to a 2015 article in Huffington Post.

鈥淧roviding no-cost period products in Ohio schools enables students to attend class, reduces period poverty and fosters gender equity,鈥� Driehaus said.

Kinsey Sullivan, a high school student at St. Ursula Academy in Cincinnati, knows firsthand how important it is having free period products accessible in schools.

鈥淚 don鈥檛 know if you know how awkward it is to slide a pad up your sleeve to walk to the bathroom,鈥� she said. 鈥淓veryone is looking at you. You have to ruffle through your backpack to just find one and it would be so much easier if they were provided for you in your bathroom.鈥�

Sullivan said this will improve girls鈥� mental health and confidence overall.

鈥淎ll students deserve this opportunity to learn, thrive and feel supported in schools,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 time that tampons and pads are provided for in the same way as toilet paper and soap.鈥�

is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Ohio Capital Journal maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor David DeWitt for questions: info@ohiocapitaljournal.com. Follow Ohio Capital Journal on and .

Outraged at the new Black history standards in Florida, Vice President Kamala Harris on Friday blasted what she called revisionist history promoted in the state鈥檚 African American history standards approved this week by top education officials.

Just two days after the the standards, Harris told the crowd in Jacksonville at the Ritz Theater and Museum that Florida鈥檚 book bans, LGBTQ+ rights restrictions, and Black history revisions are part of a national right-wing agenda.

鈥淎dults know what slavery really involved. It involved rape; it involved torture; it involved taking a baby from their mother; it involved some of the worst examples of depriving people of humanity in our world; it involved subjecting people to think of themselves and be thought of as less than humans,鈥� Harris said.

鈥淪o, in the context of that, how is it that anyone could suggest that, in the midst of these atrocities, that there was any benefit to being subjected to this level of dehumanization?鈥�

Harris continued: 鈥淎nd so, let us be clear: Teachers want to teach the truth. Teachers want to teach facts. And teachers dedicate themselves to some of the most noble work any human being could take on: to teach other people鈥檚 children 鈥� for the sake of the future of our nation.

鈥淎nd so, they should not then be told by politicians that they should be teaching revisionist history in order to keep their jobs. What is going on?鈥�

Critics of the first stand-alone say they largely limit elementary school instruction to identifying famous Black people. At the middle school level, the standards describes slavery as personally beneficial in instances where the enslaved learned skills. High schoolers will learn that the 1920 Ocoee Massacre involved violence against and by African Americans.

Extremist leaders

While Gov. Ron DeSantis didn鈥檛 address any of the specific criticisms against the standards, he took to his campaign Twitter account to ahead of her arrival.

鈥淒emocrats like Kamala Harris have to lie about Florida鈥檚 educational standards to cover for their agenda of indoctrinating students and pushing sexual topics onto children,鈥� the governor wrote. 鈥淔lorida stands in their way and we will continue to expose their agenda and their lies. The Harris-Biden administration is obsessed with Florida 鈥� yet they ignore the chaos at the border, crime-infested cities, economic malaise, and the military recruitment crisis.鈥�

Aside from criticizing the standards, the vice president called out the state government鈥檚 lack of action against gun violence. Instead of wanting to arm teachers, leaders should be promoting gun safety, she said.

Ultimately, Harris characterized extremist leaders as figures fomenting culture wars meant to divide Americans.

鈥淟et鈥檚 not fall in that trap,鈥� she said. 鈥淲e will stand united as a country. We know our collective history; it is our shared history. We are all in this together.

鈥淲e know that we will rise and fall together as a nation. We will not allow them to suggest anything other than what we know: The vast majority of us have so much more in common than what separates us.鈥�

The whole story

For now, members of the work group that developed the African American history standards are focused on explaining how they concluded that Black people benefitted from slavery because they learned skills. A spokesperson from the Florida Department of Education published a statement on Thursday from two members of the work group, citing people like John Chavis and Booker T. Washington as examples of slaves who developed trades from which they benefitted.

鈥淎ny attempt to reduce slaves to just victims of oppression fails to recognize their strength, courage, and resiliency during a difficult time in American history,鈥� according to a statement by William Allen and Frances Presley Rice who helped develop the standards. 鈥淔lorida students deserve to learn how slaves took advantage of whatever circumstances they were in to benefit themselves and the community of African descendants.鈥�

Allen and Rice added: 鈥淚t is disappointing, but nevertheless unsurprising, that critics would reduce months of work to create Florida鈥檚 first ever stand-alone strand of African American History Standards to a few isolated expressions without context.鈥�

Even so, the work group鈥檚 statement didn鈥檛 tackle the backlash against other aspects of the standards.

Black lawmakers speak out

This teaching of the 1920 Ocoee Massacre is more personal for Orange County State Sen. Geraldine Thompson. In 2020, she helped champion a bill to add the massacre to Florida鈥檚 K-12 education curriculum. She spoke out against the standards during the Wednesday meeting.

鈥淲hen you look at the history, currently it suggests that the [Ocoee] massacre was sparked by violence from African Americans,鈥� she wrote in a statement on Friday. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 blaming the victim, when in fact it was other individuals who came into the Black Community cand killed individuals and burned homes, schools, lodges, etc. So we want to tell the whole story.鈥�

Other politicians such as State Rep. Dianne Hart from Hillsborough County commended Harris for her visit. Hart is the chair of the Florida Legislative Black Caucus.

鈥淚t is unfortunate that Florida has become the leader in all the wrong areas, and this new attempt to continue to diminish the importance of African-American history, and to present our students with a lack-luster version of the truth is evidence to that fact,鈥� she wrote in a statement. 鈥淎s chair of the Black Caucus, we have made this a priority issue and we will continue to advocate for truth, for facts, and for age-appropriate curriculum.鈥�

There has been no shortage of criticism toward the standards, but no concrete actions have been announced. Though, State Sen. Bobby Powell of West Palm Beach said the 鈥渟o-called鈥� standards needed to be thrown out.

鈥淲hen the dogs and the water cannons, the police batons, and the lynching mobs were let loose on these former African American slaves, was that for their 鈥榩ersonal benefit鈥� as well? He wrote. 鈥淭hese so-called standards need to be thrown out immediately, and a full and honest examination of what鈥檚 really driving this one-sided agenda needs to begin.鈥�

is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Florida Phoenix maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Diane Rado for questions: info@floridaphoenix.com. Follow Florida Phoenix on and .