$25,000 / 2015
2356 University Ave W, Suite 405
St.Paul, MN 55114
Doran Schrantz, Executive Director
Website: www.isaiahmn.org
A one-year $25,000 renewal grant will support this multi-racial, faith-based organizing group to build out its racial justice and education reform work to close the racial achievement gap and to hold the Minnesota Department of Education accountable to pursuing racial equity outcomes. With its recent successes with alliesĀ in holding the Minnesota Department of Education accountable for pursuing a racial justice agenda and bringing racial equity to school funding, ISAIAH has started to make progress in a campaign to end the school-to-prison pipeline. ISAIAH has begun working with five Minnesota school districts and key lawmakers to take steps toward district-wide moratoriums on suspensions for non-violent offenses. Additionally, ISAIAH seeks state level resources to provide alternatives to suspension. At a public forum held by ISAIAH, Minnesota Governor Dayton declared his support for alternatives to exclusionary discipline and committed to host a summit in 2015. In addition, the Minneapolis School Board recently voted to end suspensions for children in preschool, kindergarten and first grade. Over the next year, ISAIAH will continue to build a base of young people to help lead the work on school suspensions, in particular for older students, and to organize for juvenile justice reform.