Briya Public Charter School

Thanks to Ascend at the Aspen Institute for inviting us to participate in the Aspen ThinkXChange: The National Forum on 2Gen Approaches, which brought together two-generation leaders from across the country to discuss policies and best practices to promote intergenerational well-being. Ashley Simpson Baird, Ph.D., Briya's Director of Research and Policy, spoke on the panel, “Building Evidence Together for a Better Tomorrow.” We also got to share Briya’s mission and work with over 200 attendees, including policymakers, philanthropists, program leaders, and parent advisors. Thank you to Aspen and all other inspiring attendees for this experience! We enjoyed learning with and from fellow experts in the field.  

We thoroughly enjoyed welcoming incredible leaders, practitioners, and changemakers to our Fort Totten campus last week for a site visit and tour focused on nature-based learning convened by Children & Nature Network, National League of Cities, North American Association for Environmental Education (NAAEE)'s Natural Start Alliance, Trust for Learning, the National Institute for Early Education Research, and the National Wildlife Federation—Early Childhood Outdoors (NWF-ECHO). Thank you to all the conveners and attendees for sharing their expertise in pursuit of local, state, and federal solutions that will allow more children to experience the benefits of nature-based education that Briya educators and students see daily.

Thank you to leaders from National Center for Families Learning, Kentucky Office of Adult Education, Adventurous Minds Produce Extraordinary Dreams (Amped), and DC Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE) for visiting us yesterday. We enjoyed discussing the far-reaching impact of two-generation education as well as the practices, policies, and funding needed to make it successful!

Last week marked the start of a new school year at Briya, and our classrooms are already buzzing with excitement! As we begin a new year of learning, exploration, and growth, we are thrilled to continue our two-generation approach, where families learn together. Here's to a fantastic year ahead!

Our team is hiring! We are looking for an Adult Education Mental Health Therapist to work with our adult students, most of whom are immigrant parents who attend ESOL and workforce development programs as part of our two-generation model. Candidates must be bilingual in English and Spanish! This position, hired through our longtime partner Mary's Center, supports adult students through diagnosis and assessment, individual counseling and psychotherapy, community support services, and other responsibilities. Appy today or share this job listing with your network: ttps://lnkd.in/eqzEiQjB

This spring, Briya advanced ESOL students worked on a One World Education project in which they wrote argumentative essays about issues in our communities important to each of them. This culminated in a poster presentation where students highlighted key points of their research combined with a short talk about their topic and arguments. The essays delve deep into issues such as social inequalities in breast cancer, renewable energy, technology, and the importance of education in early childhood and adulthood. Through these projects, students advanced their writing and speaking skills. Two of our students' essay were recognized on the Adult Division of the “Write for What’s Right: One World Essay" competition. Luis' essay, "Excessive Screen Time: Problem and Solutions," placed first and Janey's essay, "To Protect Children's Health Limit Consumption of Ultra Processed Foods," placed third!   Thanks to Lyric Simms, project manager from One World Education, for joining us during the presentations. 

This Friday, July 19th, at 1:30 pm ET, Briya's Senior Director of Early Childhood Strategy, Lisa Luceno, will participate in the webinar "Quality Dual Language Immersion: Programmatic Structures." Thanks to The Children's Equity Project for inviting us to join your high-quality dual language immersion monthly series! We are honored to be part of this panel with other outstanding organizations, The Century Foundation, Osborn School District and Dreamers Academy. Mark your calendars to learn more about the importance of family engagement in making dual language programs a success. You can register now by using this link: https://lnkd.in/gfVrVvCx.

Yesterday, we inaugurated our new Shepherd Street campus with a ribbon cutting and open house! Supporters toured adult ed and early childhood classrooms, shared food, and enjoyed speeches from DC Mayor Muriel Bowser, DME Kihn, Councilmember Lewis George, and ANC Commissioner Kirby. We're incredibly grateful for everyone who collaborated to make this long-term home in Petworth a reality. "Washington, DC is a city of life-long learners, and today, we celebrate the expansion of Briya Public Charter School's unique two-generation education program," Mayor Bowser said during the event. "Programs like Briya represent who we are as city: our resilience, our never-give-up spirit, our diversity and the celebration of that diversity, and our appreciation for learning – across all ages."

Congratulations to our amazing Child Development Associate (CDA) Team! Briya's CDA Program was named the winner of the 2024 Advancing Workforce Development for Adult Learners award from Coalition on Adult Basic Education. "The adult learners who emerge from this program are well equipped and ready to start a well-paying career," said Sharon Bonney, CEO of COABE. "Briya’s commitment to keeping this program free has offered a huge incentive for hundreds of students to begin this career path debt free.” This national award recognizes an outstanding workforce development initiative that is designed in response to local needs, leverages collaborative partnerships, offers career-contextualized instruction that integrates workforce and basic skills training, and leads to industry recognized/stackable credentials.

On Friday, we were honored to host five Administration for Children and Families (ACF) National Head Start Fellows for a site visit at our Fort Totten campus! We're grateful for the opportunity to share about Briya's two-generation approach, integration of outdoor learning, partnership with University of the District of Columbia-CC on a bilingual associate degree in early education, and more. We enjoyed learning about each fellow’s leadership in their respective states and look forward to witnessing the ways their work continues to transform the early education field and improves the lives of children and families across the country.