Today we’d like to introduce you to Julia Mejia.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
Early on in life, I experienced educational and economic inequity which profoundly affected my worldview and shaped who I am today. I was raised by a single mother who was undocumented for most of my childhood.
My mother migrated from the Dominican Republic with a 5th-grade level education but despite her immigration status worked three jobs to provide a better life for us. We frequented food pantries, dodged ICE and despite her struggles, she made ends meet always and managed to navigate a system which was not designed for parents like her.
Growing up, she would always tell me to “work hard and go further.” I carried that with me always and it has informed the work to which I have committed my life. This lived experience gave me the strength I did not know was possible and strong commitment to equity/social justice that is unshakable.
Today, my mother is a US Citizen and is approaching her 20th year anniversary as a food handler at Babson College. My mother’s journey paved my pathway out of poverty. Despite my own obstacles as an English Language Learner, I managed to navigate a flawed educational system to become the first in my family to graduate high school and college. I juggled two jobs throughout high school and college to help make ends meet.
Today, I am raising two strong-willed and courageous daughters who are thriving academically. Because I know I stand on the shoulders of many amazingly strong, resilient women like my mother and many more, I have devoted my entire life to creating opportunities for those most affected by our current system to step into their power and work towards positive change.
At the age of eight, I started advocating on behalf of my mother and other non-English speaking parents who were often intimidated and underserved by the very agencies designed to address their needs. It was while advocating on behalf of others, that I discovered the power of my voice. Due to my upbringing and early experiences, I understood all too well the injustices that come along with poverty and race.
Despite the challenges I faced, I am grateful because these experiences have instilled in me a life-long commitment to not only shed a light on issues affecting historically marginalized populations but also to support other parents in affecting long-lasting systemic change led by self-determination. As the founder of CPLAN, I strive to improve educational policy and practice and work to eliminate barriers to authentic engagement between families and schools.
One of my most important tasks has been to reframe and reclaim parents’ role as partners in problem-solving, rather than consumers, in the educational enterprise. To achieve this paradigm shift, I have focused my attention on elevating parent voice and creating an environment where parents can step into their power, providing leadership development opportunities to both parents and educators.
It was my life experience that led to the formation of CPLAN. Fueled by purpose and driven by passion, I created a lane for black and brown parents to shift the conversation in the education space. In 2016, charter advocates were gearing up for a ballot initiative to lift the cap while district school supporters were fighting against it and this was forcing parents of color to choose a side.
Frustrated that others were speaking on behalf of parents of color and knowing that this issue was much more complex than the choice in front of us, CPLAN worked to get parents to work together to build collective power to have student centered policy agenda. I saw my mother in so many parents who were fighting for access to quality education. I remember how she felt powerless, and I still see how many parents still feel powerless, like they don’t matter and don’t count.
There is a lot of trauma in these experiences but also a lot of resiliency and beauty in our communities. Ultimately, I know that this work is not about me – it’s about taking control of our narratives, our stories, and owning our power as community members – to build a sustainable movement and organization that grows beyond my involvement.
This is my life’s experience, my life’s work, and my life’s mission. Knowing this is my purpose on this earth gives me a sense of calm because it isn’t a job, it’s a life commitment. I’m deeply invested in ensuring this work continues to move forward, affecting positive systemic change for families.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
CPLAN Leaders have been incredibly successful in the advocacy arena in Massachusetts, changing the tone, substance, and quality of the debate at the Massachusetts State House and in Boston City Hall refusing to let lawmakers blame their inaction on the fact that no one could get along in the charter-district public school fight.
Instead, CPLAN rejected any further pitting of parents against one another and became aggressively committed to their mantra “All Means All” in their words and deeds. This thoughtful and informed pushback from parents forced lawmakers to take on issues that they have been content to avoid for years because they were too politically contentious.
CPLAN, in doing so, inserted an authentic voice into shaping policy-makers’ opinions about what public education can and must be for students in underserved communities. However, despite our efforts, it’s been challenging creating a lane that doesn’t exist for parent voice.
Bringing people together with opposing views is never easy and it’s harder to do so when adults, political interests and egos gets in the way of what’s right for all children. While I am very resourceful and have managed to keep CPLAN running on a shoestring budget as the sole staff member. CPLAN has struggled without luxury of long-term funding until recently when we landed a 5 year federal grant to support our family engagement work.
Additionally, given our early stage, we have had great support and have developed great relationships with partners at all levels but we are learning as we go and have not had the benefit of consistent organizational development support. I believe having strategic support would allow us to have access to resources that would accelerate our growth and impact.
Tell us more about the Collaborative Parent Leadership Action Network (CPLAN) – what should we know?
All parents, regardless of background, have the potential to be invaluable assets to schools and districts, and like all experts, parents need professional development in order to reach their full potential.
Formed in 2016, the Collaborative Parent Leadership Action Network (CPLAN) is a diverse group of passionate community advocates from the district, charter, parochial, and METCO schools in the city of Boston and gateway cities of Massachusetts working across all sectors to revive educational activism initiated and led by parents.
CPLAN’s parent engagement uses a dual-capacity model to address educational inequities and ensure a high quality, whole child educational experience for all learners.
CPLAN parent leaders are provided with personal and professional coaching to build the skills needed to successfully engage with schools, policy-makers, and other stakeholders.
Together with the power of our lived experience, CPLAN parent leaders inform, influence and advocate for practices and policies to improve educational outcomes for today’s most vulnerable students.
At the school level, CPLAN parent leaders work with personnel in each sector to equip schools with the skills needed to move away from family involvement which only refers to activities that occur primarily in the home and move toward a model of family engagement true, meaningful educational partnerships that provide every child with a well-rounded, culturally responsive education. At the state level, CPLAN engages policy-makers and DESE officials on systemic change.
What we are most proud of thus far is our outcomes are demonstrated by both parents and stakeholders. Parents learn to recognize and use their power, build relationships, develop public speaking and presentation skills, and understand education budgets, practices, and policies. These are all central to parents feeling comfortable enough to partner with schools on issues that affect their children academically and socially.
For CPLAN partnership schools, this movement towards collective action with parents can only help students, particularly those who are struggling and contribute to helping schools do the work needed to significantly reduce equity and opportunity gaps for all learners.
Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
Maintaining our independence and integrity has been the secret sauce to our success thus far. We answer to the needs of our parents 1st- everything we do is informed by those we serve. We don’t chase dollars or funding trends which is probably why its taken us so long to secure funding.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.cplanma.org
- Phone: 6172978758
- Email: jmejia@cplanma.org
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/871790829543053/
- Twitter: @cplanma
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