SAN FRANCIScoSTATEUNIVERSITY

CESARE. CHAVEZ
INSTITUTE
EDUCATIONAL
EoUITYINITIATIVE
JEFFREY
M. R. DUNOAN-ANDRADE,PHD.CO-DIRECTOR

Junei7,2008

To Whom It May Concern:

Ii is u'ith mixed feelingsthat I write thls letter o{ suppori for Ms. Karen Salazar.
On the one hand, it is a pieasureto write a letter of support for Ms. Salazarto
continue as a teacherat jordan High School. The very fact that so man)'
students,parents,and colleagueshave expressedoutrage at her non-renen'al
should suggestto district and schoolleadershipthat Ms. Salazaris preciselythe
type of teacherthat LAUSD is looking for to turn things around in schooislike
Jordan High School. Shehas inspired a community that so many have iabeledas
apatheticabout education. Shehas done this by following some of the best
training, educationaltheory, and educatlonairesearchthat is availableto our
field. This, in fact,puts her in compliancewith stateand national policy, which
demandsthat educatorsknor.t'the besi practicesof the field and fo1lon'them in
their ciassrooms.The fact that Ms. Salazarusesa culturally relevantcritical
pedagogy,one which vaiues and recognizesthe historical and racial identities of
her students,is directly in line with the NCLB mandate that all practicetre
supportedby "rigorousscientificresearch".lndeed,the researchthat actually
documentseffectivepracticein urban schoolssuggeststhat this is the onlr'
'proven method for raising engagementand achievementin urban ciassrooms.

This brings me to m1rfllslration with needing to write this letter of support; the
other side of my feelingson this matter. It is time that LAUSD meet its expressed
commitment to improving the quality of educationoffered to students in
communitiessuch asWatts. If, indeed, your district has more than a rhetorical
commitment to improving the quaiity of serrricevou offer io children in Watts,it
seemsillogicalthat Ms. Salazarwould find herselfunder fire. New teachers,
especiallythosethat show asmuch potential to truly engageand inspire young
people (clearlvyour district knolt s holr.'rare such individuals are),must be
supported and developed,not punished. Districts such as LAUSD struggle io
find even a handful of teachersthat inspire studentsin the way that Ms. Saiazar
does. I knolt this becausei am regulariyaskedbv largeurban disirictsfor
support to develop recruitment and retention plans to attract and retain young
teachersof color that inspire students to re-engagein schoolsvstemsthat are
faiiing them. if LAUSD ever hopes to improve the achievementin their lowest
performingschools,retainingand supportingteacherslike Ms. Salazaris
preciselvthe changein the businessasusualpoliticsthat must takepiace.

I cannot statesirongly enough that the pedagogicalframeworks that drive Ms.

Salazar'swork as an educator are embeddedwith the best of r,r'hatwe knolt
about effectiveteachingin urban schoois. If we are going to meet the
monumental challengeof educating all our children, then we are going to have
to seriouslyreconsiderhoft/ we support our most committed and effective
teachers.This will mean iisteningiioseiy to children and families when they sa1,
that they have a teacherthat is finally meeting their needs. The questionfaiing'
LAUSD in the caseof Ms. salazaris not whether she should be retained,but h6w
she can be better supported to reachand teacheven more students.

I am wiiling to speakwith you at even greater length about how you can make
such an effort as a district and why such an effort is the key to LAUSD meetins
its statedachievement soais.

Sincerely,

Jeff DunVn-Andrade, PhD

AssistantProfessor& Co-Director
RazaStudiesDept. & EducationaiAdmin and Interdisc. Studies
EducationalEquity Initiative
SanFranciscoStateUniversity
CesarChavezInstitute (CCI)
300416th Street,Suite 301
SanFrancisco,.CA 941C3..
O: (415)338-3287
F: (415) 522-5899
iandrade@sfsu.edu

SFSU C6sarE. ChdvezInstitute . 3004 - 16thStreet #3Oi . San Francisco,

CA . 94103
Telr415.522.5808 . Fax:415.522.5899 . rmdiaz@sfsu.edu . w,\a1,v.sisu.edu/_cci