June 3, 2020

Black Lives Matter

Sydney Morris and Evan Stone • Co-Founders and Co-CEOs

Black Lives Matter. 

George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, Tony McDade, and so many more, were murdered by police and racism.

The recent string of killings of Black people did not receive the attention and swift justice that they deserve because we live in a society that has continued to deny the humanity of Black people for generations. It took the strength and courage of many organized voices of pain and rage to shed light on the complete injustice. We stand in solidarity with the outrage and protest across the country. 

This must end.

The weight of this moment — and the millions of moments over hundreds of years leading up to this moment — is disproportionately felt and carried by our Black community. 

As White leaders, we recognize that this is not a time for us to talk — it’s a time for us to take action, and most importantly amplify and listen to the voices of Black people. We launched Educators for Excellence because, as teachers, we saw that our education system is rife with inequity. Our work has always been about organizing, building power, and sharing the voices of educators to drive change for their students and their profession. We believe stories have the power to transform narratives and mindsets, and we believe our collective humanity and liberation is interwoven. In the coming days, weeks, and months, we will be using E4E’s channels to share stories of how members of the E4E community – our E4E team and teacher members – are processing and working to drive change in our country, our streets, and our schools. 

Read Not So Young, Gifted, and Black by Simone Ward, E4E Vice President of Regional Strategy
Read Teaching While Black in Grief and Rage by Paula White, E4E-New York Executive Director
Read On Being Black and Blue by Andréa Comer, E4E-Connecticut Executive Director

We will never transform our education system for the next generation if we fail to address the racism embedded within it. As educators, we have the unique privilege and responsibility to change that system from the classroom up, and we’re committed to listening, learning, and making vital changes to strengthen Educators for Excellence and better serve you and your students. If you would like to share your story for us to amplify, please submit it here. If you have ideas or would like to discuss how we can do better and show up in a stronger way, we would love to talk with you and learn more — let us know at estone@e4e.org and smorris@e4e.org




Sydney Morris and Evan Stone