The ideal of the “common school” was the motivating vision for creating a system of public education in the United States – a vision of pluralism, inclusiveness, and a common commitment to deliberative democratic citizenship. Though never fully realized, the promise of a democratic public education for all has been a touchstone of the American political project and has inspired waves of progressive education reform.
Guest speakers in Y-Lab’s Preserving Public Education series will highlight timely controversies related to public schools and invite a conversation about how we can preserve public education as a key democratic institution in the face of increasing threats to its underlying vision.
This page will be updated with more details about talks in the series on an ongoing basis. Please check back for more information, including video recordings of speakers’ remarks whenever possible.
“Transgender Students’ Rights In Public Schools,” with Professor Anne Dailey
In our first talk, “Transgender Students’ Rights In Public Schools,” Professor Anne Dailey discussed barriers transgender youth face to full and equal participation in our nation’s public schools. Below is a recording of Professor Dailey’s remarks from December 1, 2021.
“Parental-Rights Extremism And Its Anti-Democratic Foundation,” with Carmen Longoria-Green
In our second talk, Carmen Longoria-Green will discuss the decades-long campaign by parental-rights extremists—beginning in response to school desegregation and the perceived “godlessness” of public schools—and its heavy hand in the homeschooling movement; its current political power; and what more we can expect from its adherents. Below is a recording of Carmen’s talk from March 30, 2022.
“Anti-Racist Movement Lawyering,” with Saa’un P. Bell and John Affeldt
For our third talk, Saa’un P. Bell, Associate Director Campaign, Policy, Narrative Strategy, Power California, and John Affeldt, Managing Attorney, Public Advocates Inc., discussed the methods their organizations have employed to create more equity in California’s public schools. Below is a recording of Bell and Affeldt’s remarks on April 4, 2022.
Protecting LGBTQ+ Students: Fighting Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” Bill
In CAP’s fourth talk, LGBTQ+ advocate Michael Womack, student activist Will Larkins, and HLS Lecturer on Law Alexander Chen, discuss the impact of Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” Bill on LGBTQ+ youth, public schooling, and the legal battles ahead. Below is a recording of the talk by Womack, Larkins, and Chen on April 20, 2022.
Y-Lab Writing Program Lunch Talk
Tuesday, March 21, 2023, Y-Lab Fellows and Writing Program participants discuss their research and writing projects related public education:
- “Students with Disabilities and Massachusetts Vocational Schools,” a discussion with Brian Dezurick (JD ’23).
- “Revitalizing the Democratic Vision of Public Education,” a discussion with Alyssa Milstead (JD ’23).
Deny, Defund, and Divert: The Law and American Miseducation, a Talk with Professor Janel George
Monday, March 27, 2023, Professor George presents a draft of her paper, Deny, Defund, and Divert: The Law and American Miseducation, which “draws a through-line between laws enacted to prevent desegregation” in the aftermath of Brown v. Board of Education and recently-introduced “laws that seek to exclude the nation’s history of racial inequality and its enduring effects from curriculum.”
2021-2022 Co-sponsors of Preserving Public Education Series included: Advocates for Education, American Constitution Society, Asian Pacific American Law Students Association, The Bell Collective, Child and Youth Advocates, Disability Law Students Association, La Alianza, Trauma and Learning Policy Initiative/Education Law Clinic, and the Women’s Law Association.