Wally Aldeen Alhomaidi
Wally Aldeen Alhomaidi is an Arab-American/Muslim male that has dealt with the lack of resources and unfair treatment in the education system, and wants to share his story to help make a difference.
Check out the first vlog by Wally Aldeen Alhomaidi from the 482Youth group of 482Forward "Why Funding Matters" about school funding.
We're looking forward to more blogs and vlogs from 482Forward in the weeks to come!
482Forward is a citywide education organizing network in Detroit. "We are neighborhood organizations, parents, and youth committed to ensuring that all Detroit children have access to an excellent education, regardless of their race or socioeconomic status. Together, we are building power to make systemic change and win educational justice for our communities.
Hello everyone, it’s me, Wally again. Some of you may know me from my last blog “Why Funding Matters.” As I stated before, even though charter schools are publicly funded and experience many of the same issues that schools in the Detroit Public School District face, in many instances, it's much harder to hold them accountable to the students, families, and communities they serve.
That’s mostly because of how far away the board, management companies, and other leaders of the school feel. They aren’t accessible to us, and we only really get responses when we make a big fuss (and the responses are never good). Honestly, I’m not even sure if I know HOW to hold my school officials accountable. The traditional district, Detroit Public School Community District (DPSCD) has lots of ways to do so. Students have access to emails, numbers, hotlines, etc. to reach their board and superintendent. But at my school, we don’t know who the board members are because we have no way to talk to them. And even if we do actually get to talk to our school leaders, that doesn’t mean they’ll address any of our concerns. Sometimes, we bring ideas to our superintendent and she doesn’t even write them down--because she knows no one can hold her accountable to them!
You may think that sounds strange, but for me, it’s reality. I never questioned the lack of resources available to me--I thought it was normal.
Here’s a list of a few regular occurrences in my school I pegged as normal:
Using one small room as a gymnasium, lunchroom, and auditorium
Not having a music class
Only being able to use instruments that my teacher could afford to buy us
Not having access to any transportation
Using a small closet for a library
Reading 10-year-old books in that closet
Using broken desks, chairs, and ripped books
