our vision.
The Diverse Learners Coalition, at its core is committed to providing legislative fellowship opportunities to individuals who come from diverse backgrounds. Califiornia’s most vulnerable students — those at the intersection of multiple historically marginalized identities (e.g., low-income students living in concentrated poverty, students with disabilities, English language learners, immigrants, homeless students) — have not benefited from progress at the same rates as others. And they do not normally have access to these critical internship opportunities.
As an example, research from the National Center for Learning Disabilities has found that between 80-90% of students with disabilities can achieve the same outcomes as their general education peers with the proper support. However, we have vastly different outcomes for students with disabilities: by 8th grade, only 8% of students with disabilities are prepared to read and complete math problems at grade level, and by senior year, only 66% of students with disabilities graduate on time.
With legislative fellowship, we will change these outcomes and work to ensure the classroom is the most equitable and accessible resource we offer children.
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Patrick & Ben
Co-Founders, Diverse Leaners Coalition