Rocketship California’s Day on the Hill

Amy Parada, Associate Director of Family Leadership & Community Organizing, and Maricela Guerrero, Executive Director, Rocketship California

In April, our California Leadership Organizing Committee (CLOC) held its second annual Day on the Hill at the Sacramento State Capitol. This opportunity to meet with state representatives was a chance for our families and staff to build relationships, share their stories, and influence future legislative decisions that could positively impact each and every one of our schools. This year, our CLOC participants focused on advocating for education funding, and in previous years, have focused on issues such as gun violence, access to mental health resources, and more. Our CLOC families and staff met with 15 legislative offices to share their powerful stories and to stress the importance of prioritizing our K-12 education, especially for our Title 1 schools.

Lorena Romero, an outstanding parent leader and alumna of Rocketship Fuerza Community Prep through her son’s journey, shared her testimony and the power of our Los Dichos program. She was joined by her son Edwin, a Rocketship Fuerza alum, who exemplified our impact on a strong family-school partnership.

Albert Perez, principal of Rocketship Rising Stars Academy, shared his journey from a childhood without access to high-quality education in his neighborhood to a career dedicated to providing excellent education to underserved communities. State representatives’ eyes visibly widened when Albert shared his personal experience and everyone present was inspired to hear him advocate for more equitable funding for all students.

We were also joined by Guillermina Huerta, one of our newest family leaders from Rocketship Los Sueños Academy. Seeing her advocate in her native tongue of Spanish and sharing her experience as an attorney in Mexico was extremely powerful. Guillermina proudly expressed how joining CLOC has reignited her passion for advocacy!

Alexander Johnson, a teacher at Rocketship Delta Prep, passionately shared his commitment to educating our Rocketeers. Rocketship is home for him, and he made it clear to our state reps! One example he gave was how he made the choice to commute almost two hours round-trip to teach at Rocketship rather than work at a school he was not as passionate about!

New, inclusive policy is necessary to help transform our education systems that have marginalized so many for so long. But policy, especially impactful policy, takes time. We know that meaningful change to California’s public school funding will require several years of hard work and persistence in advocacy before it becomes law. Regardless, Rocketship’s California Leadership Organizing Committee is committed to continuing this long-term effort for the benefit of all our Rocketeers.

It takes a village to advocate as a CLOC commUNITY, so shoutout to all participants who joined us in Sacramento and made our California Day on the Hill a POWERFUL experience for all. Together, we will continue to advocate for social justice, and together we are all Rocketship Rocketeers!

Published on May 21, 2024