Over the past decade, ReadyCT has worked to improve academic and postsecondary outcomes for students across Connecticut. Our efforts have consistently prioritized high-need public school districts, predominantly represented by low-income students of color.

In that capacity, we are bearing witness to the pain being experienced by these students, their families, and their communities brought on by the recent deaths of George Floyd in Minnesota, Breonna Taylor in Kentucky, and Ahmaud Arbery in Georgia.

To those most deeply impacted, know that we fully condemn these atrocities as well as those that came before, and look to support, in meaningful and appropriate ways, the justice and healing so desperately needed at this time.

For the students we serve, we want you to know that through our summer and school-year programming now and into the future, we will provide a space to hold important conversations on systemic racism, implicit bias, discrimination, and equity. We welcome the opportunity to participate in any efforts that bring these conversations to the statewide level.

On a related note, we recognize the difficulties facing educators in our school districts and communities. We know educators are invested in the well-being of their students and yet, like so many of us, may be uncertain of what to do or say at this time. While we have no perfect answers, we do see that outreach to students and their families paired with words of support and compassion can have tremendous impact. Conversations and discourse on a personal level can help to de-escalate anger and frustration often fueled by vague generalities and accusations.

There is a path forward, long and arduous as it may be. It will require a collective effort to face our own individual prejudices together with a collaborative fight for equity in pursuit of heralding the inherent worth and value of each of us. #TogetherWeAreMore

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Joseph R. Voelker, Chair, ReadyCT Board of Directors

Jeff Auker, Vice Chair, ReadyCT Board of Directors

Shannon Marimón, Executive Director, ReadyCT