Organizing That Lasts: Parent Power for Renewal and Beyond
Parents are among the most powerful advocates for charter schools - especially those with thriving students who want school choice protected and expanded. This session will equip school and network leaders with clear strategies to identify, organize, and support caregiver champions who can advocate for their schools. Participants will explore: Building school leader capacity to organize school communities; building parent leadership that lasts beyond a single campaign; a case study on how Summit Public Schools utilized organizing in a new way to build caregiver champions, win renewal, and seed local leadership.
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Presented by
Founder and Principal Consultant
Organizing That Works
Alicia Ross is the founder and principal consultant of her company, Organizing That Works, founded in 2022, that provides training, coaching, and strategy development to build authentic grassroots power for change, with a focus on the charter school movement. Alicia brings over two decades of experience with a proven relational organizing model that has been used to both develop powerful organizing leaders primarily from underrepresented communities and win policy victories at the state and local levels across the country. Alicia has worked extensively in capacity building with charter schools seeking to establish grassroots organizing work in their schools and communities.
Public Affairs Manager
Summit Public Schools
Izzy was born and raised in the East Bay Area. A loud, loyal, and loving friend and daughter, she has always been driven by a deep commitment to justice and belonging. A graduate of UC Berkeley, her passion led her from growing food to leading classrooms, schools, and advocacy campaigns across organizations in multiple states. Today, she leads public affairs at Summit, where she sees herself in the students and feels deeply aligned with the mission. Her work is rooted in joy, humility, and trust—and in a lifelong belief in safe, liberating spaces for young people to thrive.