By Deborah Bailey
AFRO Contributing Editor
At Washington D.C.’s Social Justice Charter School, social justice is a concept that extends beyond a classroom or a unit studied in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Social justice is the theme that permeates the entire school, influencing every aspect of classroom and school activities.
Since 2020, the D.C. Social Justice Charter School has been a home away from home for 100 sixth through eighth graders and their families who have signed on with enthusiasm to the school’s challenge of becoming the next generation of ‘scholar-activists.’
The school sits near the Maryland-D.C. border in the Lamond-Riggs community of Northeast Washington, D.C. and was planned by co-founders Myron Long and Brandon Johnson with the involvement of the community, the school organizers emphasize. Long and Johnson said the school, now in its fifth year, represents not only their vision, but the values of the community, a concept that the two educators with roots in the communities near the school said was crucial.
Building a school with the community
“We have a principle of building with the community, not just for them,” said Long, who anchors the external-facing administrative leadership of the charter school. “We wanted to make sure our school served the needs of the community. We’ve seen charter schools that come in without the input of the community and colonize them,” Long added.
“We’ve graduated three classes. Most of the parents and families who started with us during those early planning meetings and community interviews have stayed with us,” said Johnson, who was the founding principal of the school and continues to lead the day-to-day academic side of the enterprise.
“They are a family-centered school. I found them to be very open and approachable,” said Alisha Livingston, who lives in the Lamond-Riggs community and is one of the SJCS’s long-time parents.
Livingston emphasized that the school has a variety of ways for parents to connect with the school. A weekly ‘robo’ call from school administrators is one of the ways the school stays in touch with every family, in addition to distributing “The Social Justice Times,” a school-wide newsletter and attending neighborhood meetings and events to keep the community close, Long said.
Partnering with community resources to support the most vulnerable students
With child poverty rates soaring in D.C., Long said the students themselves developed the suggestion to connect to the community to support struggling students and families. According to the U.S. Census 2024 American Community Survey, 28.3 percent of District residents under 18 live in poverty.
The Social Justice Learning School is currently partnered with the Health Equity Fund (HEF), which recently expanded a financial assistance pilot program started with the Mothers Outreach Network in 2023. HEF has enabled the charter school to expand the financial assistance outreach program to a 19-month program called “Guaranteed Together.” Forty families in financial need will receive 300 dollars per month, and students will receive 100 dollars per month.
“What we’re seeing right now is that those families can meet their basic needs,” said Long, who wants to see the program expanded to every family that needs financial assistance. “They are less stressed than students who need this, but are not in the program.”
Love, learning and liberation
Social Justice Charter School students receive an education aligned with national, state, and District standards and delivered in a manner that prepares students with the skills to understand life from a social justice perspective. Social Justice Charter School students approach tasks like preparing for traditional parent-teacher meetings by leading the process.
Love, learning and liberation are the school’s major themes, so basic activities that all schools share, like a parent-teacher meeting, are re-imagined and called “parent, student, teacher conferences.” Students take the lead in connecting with both their parents and teachers in conversations about student academic progress.
Zakaria Kello, 11, showed off some of the projects created in the school’s “Liberatory Design Lab” during her parent, student, teacher conference. Zakaria creates art that connects with issues and concerns in her life and community.
“Art can represent social justice,” said Zakaria, who decided to attend the school because of opportunities to become a better leader. “I heard how this school pushes you and helps you move forward.”