Salem Keizer Coalition for Equality

Mission: We partner and advocate with Latino/a/x families, schools and communities to ensure equitable educational outcomes. SKCE was founded in 1999 when community outrage came to a head with the first ever publication of research showing the state's discipline, dropout and graduation rates, disaggregated by race and ethnicity.

We serve Latino/a/x students and families in the Salem Keizer School District area. Latino/a/x students make up the largest portion of students (17,000 out of 42,000, 44% ) in the district, the largest number in the state of Oregon. Their families make up 25% of the city and county. Our families are nearly all Mexican immigrants with agricultural backgrounds from poorer and rural parts of Mexico. Oregon has been known to be a "white" state, and the demographic shifts in the last 25 years have caused a great deal of anxiety in the historically White population, resulting in prejudice, discrimination and racism, which we have had addressed through protest, advocacy, education, partnership and relationships.

Our strategies are Parent Engagement and Education Systems Change: Parents as first teachers & leaders at home, at school, and in the community. Our programming is parent education, parent/child interaction, parent leadership and civic engagement, forming strong families, mental health and family relationships support, monthly gatherings and support groups.