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Steps to Achieve this Part of Gayle's Plan

4. Better Education

The City of Richmond must intervene to save Richmond‘s children from inadequate and insufficient learning opportunities. Even though it is the responsibility of the WCCUSD to see that appropriate school services are provided, the reality is that generation after generation of our children are short-changed in their education. I am committed to the youth of Richmond and will ensure they receive learning support opportunities to compensate the shortcomings of our public schools.

As mayor, I will:
Increase funding for the Richmond Public Library by prioritizing education in the city
budget and aggressively lobbying the state government on issues of education funding.
Reopen full time the West Side and the Bay View library branches.
Build two additional library branches in the neighborhoods most impacted by violence.
Improve the quality of education by supporting community based after-school programs in
each City neighborhood to strengthen the academic learning from the schools and include
areas not covered by the school programs such as life skills promotion.
Make good management of the WCCUSD a priority by pushing district officials to adopt
sunshine laws, ensuring there are clear lines of accountability, and strengthening the role
of the City's liaison to the school district.
Bring new voices to the table by supporting the idea that non-citizens with children should
be able to vote in school board elections, advocating for a Student Advisory Commission,
invigorating the City's Youth Commission, and promoting better ties between school site
Councils and the City Neighborhood Councils.
Find ways to allow for alternative assessment models for evaluating academic success
rather than requiring the High School exit exam to be the sole measure of achievement
and readiness.
Recognize the centrality of art in a well-rounded education by supporting the Richmond
Art Center and the East Bay Center for Performing Arts, helping them to ensure high rates
of low income and minority representation. I will encourage funding partners, both private
and public, as well as artists and arts organizations to play a more active role in allocating
resources to our public schools.
Support students in non-traditional ways encouraging individual creativity and uniqueness.

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