Experts from the University of Colorado Boulder are available to discuss various political issues, including DACA, education policy, banned books and school safety.
School safety
Beverly Kingston is director of the Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence. She can discuss evidence-based strategies for preventing mass shootings and violence in schools.
Read: “Can we avert the next mass shooting? Yes, and here’s how”
Banned books
Wendy Glenn is a professor in the School of Education at CU Boulder who studies literature for young adults. She can talk about the recent wave of literacy censorship in schools across the country and how frequently-banned books can introduce students to “hard and essential lessons.”
Kevin Welner, a lawyer and a professor in the School of Education at CU Boulder, is director of the National Education Policy Center. He can discuss potential legal challenges to recent education policies around the country, including Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill and school district decisions to remove books from school libraries and classrooms.
Watch: “The Double-Edged Sword of Story: Literary Censorship in Schools”
LGBTQ+ students
Elizabeth Meyer, an associate professor in the School of Education, is a co-author of a 2022 report titled “Transgender Students and Policy in K-12 Public Schools: Acknowledging Historical Harms and Taking Steps Toward a Promising Future.” She can discuss her research on Title IX in K-12 schools, LGBTQ+ students and how discriminatory practices can harm transgender and non-binary youth.
Brittni Laura Hernandez, Bethy Leonardi and Sara Staley direct a project called A Queer Endeavor at CU Boulder. They can discuss their efforts in Colorado and beyond to “organize safer, more humanizing learning environments for LGBTQ+ youth, families, and staff.”
Read: “From 'Don’t Say Gay' to bathrooms and sports: How debates over LGBTQ+ rights impact kids”
Read: “A Queer Endeavor comes of age in Colorado”
DACA
On Sept. 13, 2023, a federal judge again declared the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA, illegal. The ruling does not end the program but extends an already years-long legal battle over its existence. CU Boulder experts are available to discuss what the ruling means for DACA recipients and immigration in the United States.
Pratheepan (Deep) Gulasekaram, a professor of constitutional law and immigration law at CU Boulder, studies the constitutional rights of noncitizens and has written multiple books on immigration policy. Gulasekaram can offer his take on what this latest ruling means for DACA recipients and the state of immigration in the United States.
Violeta Chapin, a clinical professor of law and head of the Criminal and Immigration Defense Clinic at Colorado Law, can explain the ruling and what it means for hopeful DACA recipients. She can also share her perspective of the validity of the ruling and what’s next for DACA in what could be a lengthy legal battle.
Read: "What the latest DACA ruling means for the program and its Dreamers"