In light of recent events concerning racial inequality, gender inequity, and religious intolerance, the need for a racially and generally inclusive curriculum is more pressing than ever. We demand that in accordance with regular course materials in the Yonkers Public School district, teachers enrich our learning by incorporating a variety of diverse perspectives. In our English classrooms, we want to read more novels written by people of color. In our history courses, we want to utilize a myriad of diverse primary sources that relate to different eras in our nation's history. While we understand that it may be difficult to completely reconstruct our district's curriculum, we hope that we can introduce new and unique voices to enrich our classes. 

Diversifying curriculum has been proven to raise attendance rates, increase students' GPA, and encourage students to pursue more credits before graduation. By making the Yonkers Public Schools curriculum more encompassing of all cultures, students whose histories have been misconstrued in the classroom will engage more with their subject material. 

The website HiStory Retold (link: https://historyretoldproje.wixsite.com/website/student-teacher-resources ) has a variety of enrichment materials organized by US History era, along with an organized list of novels written from unique perspectives. Teachers can utilize this website to enrich their coursework.

We hope that you will join us in creating a curriculum that is more representative of the students that it serves.