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ORGANIZATIONS in the South
Citizens for Quality
Education/Southern Echo
This group in Jackson, Mississippi, began its work to improve schools in Holmes County in 1996. Through CQE,
parents and students work together to hold the school board
accountable for improving the performance of the schools in the
district. They have fought for and won revision of the district's
disciplinary policies, created an after-school math enrichment
program, and published a report that sheds light on the “mis-education and
criminalization” of youth.
 Young and the Restless Offers
the democratic space and the skills for youth aged 15-21 to find their
own voices and leadership at the Highlander Center in New Market,
Tennessee. The program works with young people in a number of ways,
including extensive outreach, field visits, and ongoing backup to
support youth activists in their communities. They also offer an
intensive, youth-led camp that gathers 20-25 young activists and
provides them with peer-based training and experiences that open up
the concepts of youth power, critical thinking about organizing, and
ownership of their own projects and organizations.
Indianola Parent Student Group
The Indianola,
Mississippi, Parent Student
Group was born in 1999 when the school superintendent closed down a
promising program, the Math Games League, which had sparked interest
in math among African-American students and their parents. The group
overturned his decision, restored the program, and decided to
establish a sustained effort to ensure community accountability from
school and public officials. In recent years, IPSG has earned several
major victories, including the Indianola School Board’s agreement to
approve construction of two science labs and provide up-to-date
science texts for students.
Tunica Teens in Action
A youth leadership program formed in
July 1999 by young people who realized they needed to develop their
skills to help the community and themselves to succeed in a school
system that has been on academic probation for over ten years.
Carolina Alliance for Fair Employment
Engages students in Greenville, South Carolina through a project
aiming to reduce racial disparities in public schools. They provide
youth leadership development and organizing opportunities in order to
build relationships between African American and Latino youth.
TOOLS for the South
Student Organizing
Library
Articles, books, videos, and
plans to teach and share student-led community organizing on education reform
and school improvement. Look for...
Student Activism Success Stories
Collection of stories about student-led organizing from across
the United States focusing on students changing schools.
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