Intercultural Development Research Association

IDRA IS AN INDEPENDENT, NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION DEDICATED TO STRENGTHENING PUBLIC SCHOOLS TO WORK FOR ALL STUDENTS. FOUNDED ON PRINCIPLES OF ENSURING EQUALITY OF EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITY FOR EVERY STUDENT, IDRA WORKS WITH OTHERS TO CREATE SELF-RENEWING SCHOOLS.

THE REGION II IDRA EAC-SOUTH IS A FEDERALLY FUNDED PROGRAM THAT IDRA OPERATES TO DEVELOP LOCAL CAPACITY AMONG THE APPROXIMATELY 2,329 SCHOOL DISTRICTS AND 28,628 SCHOOLS IN THE REGION AND TO DESEGREGATE SCHOOLS IN THE AREA OF RACE, NATIONAL ORIGIN, GENDER AND RELIGION. THE PROGRAM IMPLEMENTS A COHERENT, RESEARCH BASED TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND TRAINING PLAN IN REGION II THROUGH STRATEGIC APPROACHES, SERVICE DELIVERY, AND WEB-BASED AND ON-SITE APPROACHES. PROJECT RECIPIENTS INCLUDE SEA'S AND LEA'S IN REGION II STATES WHICH INCLUDE ALABAMA, ARKANSAS, FLORIDA, GEORGIA, LOUISIANA, MISSISSIPPI, NORTH CAROLINA, SOUTH CAROLINA, TENNESSEE, TEXAS, VIRGINIA AND THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA.

REENERGIZE - IN THIS PROGRAM, IDRA IS WORKING IN PARTNERSHIP WITH EDGEWOOD ISD, SOUTHWEST ISD, AND THE COLLEGE OF EDUCATION AND HUMAN DEVELOPMENT AT THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT SAN ANTONIO TO COMBINE EXPERTISE IN PREPARING PRINCIPALS IN AN UNPRECEDENTED WAY TO SUPPORT HIGH-POVERTY, LOW PERFORMING SCHOOLS TO IMPROVE ACHIEVEMENT OF STUDENTS, EDGEWOOD ISD AND SOUTHWEST ISD IN THE WESTSIDE OF SAN ANTONIO WILL BUILD AND STRENGTHEN THE LEADERSHIP TEAMS TO BEGIN A NEW ERA OF CHANGE MARKED BY SYSTEMIC, STRUCTURAL AND INSTRUCTIONAL TRANSFORMATIONS.

THE DEVELOPMENT FUND PROVIDES RESOURCES FOR MISSION-CRITICAL AND PRIORITY PROGRAM SERVICES NOT SUPPORTED BY EXTERNAL FUNDING AND FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF NEW PROGRAMS. FOR EXAMPLE, THE DEVELOPMENT FUND FACILITATES THE EXTERNAL DISSEMINATION OF KNOWLEDGE ABOUT BEST TEACHING PRACTICES IN CLASSROOMS WITH DIVERSE STUDENTS, THE CREATION OF MATERIALS THAT SPECIFICALLY ADDRESS THE NEEDS OF TRADITIONALLY UNDERSERVED STUDENTS, AND RESEARCH ON SCHOOL FINANCE AND OTHER INDICATORS TIED TO THE QUALITY OF EDUCATION THAT ALL STUDENTS RECEIVE. THE EDUCATIONAL SERVICES THIS FUND SUPPORTS HAVE A DIRECT IMPACT ON FAMILIES AND EDUCATORS. IN 2021, IDRA, THROUGH THE DEVELOPMENT FUND, DIRECTLY SERVED 2,622 STUDENTS, PARENTS, TEACHERS, OR SCHOOL ADMINISTRATORS.

MPI - THE MPI PROGRAM IS A COALITION BUILDING, ORGANIZING AND LEADERSHIP ENGAGEMENT INITIATIVE. IDRA WORKED WITH THE TEXAS LEGISLATIVE EDUCATION EQUITY COALITION (TLEEC) AND OTHER ALLIED PARTNERS TO SUPPORT ENGLISH LEARNER CHILDREN THROUGH DATA DRIVEN BENCHMARKS. THE GOAL OF THE COALITION IS TO WORK WITH PARTNERS TO HELP EDUCATE, ADVOCATE AND ULTIMATELY ENACT DATA DRIVEN POLICIES TO HELP ENGLISH LEARNERS (ELS) AND FAMILIES SUCCEED.SCG - SEEK COMMON GROUND IS A PROGRAM FUNDED BY THE NEW VENTURE FUND WHERE IDRA ENGAGED COMMUNITY PARTNERS TO SUPPORT A COHORT OF HIGH SCHOOL AND COLLEGE STUDENT ADVOCATES IN SAN ANTONIO TO DEVELOP COMMUNITY-CENTERED COVID-19 POLICY AND PRACTICE RECOMMENDATIONS. THE PROGRAM CONTINUES A RICH TRADITION OF FAMILY LEADERSHIP IN EDUCATION IN TEXAS AND ENSURES STUDENTS AND FAMILIES MOST IMPACTED BY THE EDUCATIONAL INEQUITIES EXACERBATED BY COVID-19 ARE A MEANINGFUL PART OF DEVELOPING RESPONSIVE SOLUTIONS.FORWARD - READY TEXAS IS A MIXED METHOD STUDY THAT BUILDS ON AND DEEPENS THE WORK FROM OUR PREVIOUS RESEARCH PROJECTS WITH THE GREATER TEXAS FOUNDATION. THIS RESEARCH PROJECT BUILDS ON OUR PREVIOUS GTF WORK BY EXPANDING OUR QUALITATIVE RESEARCH INTO THE ROLE MIDDLE SCHOOL COUNSELORS PLAY IN POST-SECONDARY ACCESS SINCE HB5 IMPLEMENTATION THROUGHOUT ALL GEOGRAPHIC REGIONS IN THE STATE AND BY DEEPENING OUR RESEARCH ON STUDENT IMPACT BY REPORTING ON THEIR EXPERIENCES THROUGH SURVEYS AND SELECTIVE FOCUS GROUPS. THE KNOWLEDGE PRODUCT COMPONENT OF THIS PROJECT PROVIDES RESOURCES FOR DISSEMINATING ACTIONABLE DATA BY CREATING AN ONLINE COMMUNITY TOOLKIT THAT PROVIDES COMPREHENSIBLE INFORMATION AND RECOMMENDATIONS ON GAUGING HB 5'S IMPACT ON POST-SECONDARY ACCESS FOR ALL STUDENTS.VISIONCODERS - IS A FEDERAL PROGRAM THAT IMPLEMENTS A NEW EIGHTH GRADE COMPUTER SCIENCE COURSE BEING DEVELOPED BY IDRA IN PARTNERSHIP WITH TEXAS A&M UNIVERSITY- SAN ANTONIO (TAMUSA) AND SEVEN BEXAR COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICTS. IN THIS COURSE, MIDDLE SCHOOL STUDENTS WHO ARE IN AT-RISK SITUATIONS WILL BECOME SOFTWARE DESIGNERS WHO CREATE EDUCATIONAL GAMES FOR PRE-KINDERGARTEN AND FIRST GRADE STUDENTS IN THEIR COMMUNITIES. VISIONCODERS ALSO INTEGRATES FOCUSED TEACHER TRAINING THROUGH A MASTERS LEVEL COURSE THROUGH TAMUSA. PARTICIPATING SCHOOL DISTRICTS INCLUDE EAST CENTRAL, EDGEWOOD, HARLANDALE, SOMERSET, SOUTH SAN ANTONIO, SOUTH SIDE, AND SOUTHWEST ISD'S. SEEN - THE SOUTHERN EDUCATION EQUITY NETWORK IS FUNDED BY THE HEWLETT FOUNDATION WITH FOUR MAIN GOALS IN TEXAS AND GEORGIA. THE PROGRAM SEEKS TO 1) DEVELOP A VIRTUAL NETWORK TO SUPPORT EDUCATION ADVOCATES; 2) EXPAND CULTURALLY-SUSTAINING TEACHING THAT ACCURATELY PORTRAYS THE CONTRIBUTIONS OF ALL COMMUNITIES; 3) ELIMINATE DISCIPLINE AND POLICING PRACTICES THAT ADVERSELY IMPACT STUDENTS OF COLOR; AND 4) CONNECT ADVOCATES WITH STATE-LEVEL POLICY FELLOWS. THE PROGRAM SEEKS TO ACCOMPLISH THESE GOALS BY LEVERAGING NEW EDUCATION CAFES ACROSS TEXAS AND GEORGIA, A VIRTUAL NETWORK CONNECTING FAMILIES AND ADVOCATES ACROSS THE REGION, AND BY CREATING A NETWORK OF TRAINED ADVOCATES OF COLOR THAT WILL CONTINUE TO WORK ON EDUCATION ADVOCACY ISSUES ACROSS THE REGION.EPF - THE EDUCATION POLICY FELLOWS PROGRAM FUNDED BY THE KRESGE FOUNDATION, IS A PROGRAM TO BUILD CAPACITY AND SUSTAINABILITY FOR A FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM FOR EARLY- AND MID-CAREER PROFESSIONALS TO ENGAGE IN STATE-LEVEL ADVOCACY CONCERNING ISSUES OF RACE, EQUITY, AND DIVERSITY IN COLLEGE PATHWAYS. COMMUNITIES MOST IMPACTED BY EDUCATION POLICIES AND RACIAL INJUSTICE MUST BE A MEANINGFUL PART OF DECISION MAKING PROCESSES, AND THE FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM SEEKS TO ADDRESS A STARK LACK OF REPRESENTATION OF THOSE COMMUNITIES IN THOSE PROCESSES.PA - THE PHILANTHROPY ADVOCATES PROGRAM FUNDED BY THE COMMUNITIES FOUNDATION OF TEXAS, FUNDED IDRA TO CONVENE A GROUP OF FAMILY ADVOCATES TO INFORM THE AGENDA CONCERNING YOUNG ENGLISH LEARNERS FOR THE EARLY CHILDHOOD ENGLISH LEARNER (ECEL) INITIATIVE. ECEL IS LED BY TEXANS CARE FOR CHILDREN AND THE EARLY GRADE SUCCESS POLICY WORK GROUP WITHIN PHILANTROPY ADVOCATES. IDRA LEVERAGED OUR FAMILY AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT NETWORK OF APPROXIMATELY 300 MEMBERS TO IDENTIFY A MINIMUM OF 10 LEADERS FROM THIS NETWORK TO SERVE AS FAMILY ADVOCATES, UPLIFT THE VOICES OF PARENTS, FAMILIES AND STUDENTS IN ADVOCATING THE ECEL'S.TRELLIS - THE IDRA EDUCATION POLICY FELLOWS PROGRAM, FUNDED BY THE TRELLIS FOUNDATION, PROVIDES REAL WORLD TRAINING TO ADVOCATES OF COLOR TO INFLUENCE HIGHER EDUCATION POLICY IN TEXAS. FELLOWS SUPPORT A NETWORK OF EXPERIENCED POLICY ADVOCATES TO ADVANCE AN EQUITY-FOCUSED AGENDA AND ENSURE THAT DECISION-MAKERS CENTER THE EXPERTISE AND PERSPECTIVES OF PEOPLE OF COLOR.STP - THE STUDENT POWER GRANT FUNDED BY THE ACTION NOW INITIATIVE, LLC, IS A GRANT INTENDED TO SUPPORT IDRA'S EDUCATION AND ISSUE ACTIVITIES RELATING TO JUVENILE LEGAL FEES IN TEXAS. THIS GRANT SUPPORTS ACTIVITIES SUCH AS IDRA'S YOUTH ADVISORY BOARD. THIS BOARD CONSIST OF YOUTH MEMBERS THAT INFORM IDRA'S WORK IN THIS AND OTHER AREAS.