Author to speak at Highline CC about education achievement gap

Pedro Noguera, an author, professor and former K-12 classroom teacher will speak Thursday, Oct. 18 at Highline Community College about poverty's pervasive influence on the achievement gap and what he believes to be an oversight by current education policy to address the issue.

Author Pedro Noguera will speak about education issues Oct. 18 at Highline Community College in Des Moines.

Author Pedro Noguera will speak about education issues Oct. 18 at Highline Community College in Des Moines.

Pedro Noguera, an author, professor and former K-12 classroom teacher will speak Thursday, Oct. 18 at Highline Community College about poverty’s pervasive influence on the achievement gap and what he believes to be an oversight by current education policy to address the issue.

The free event is at 7 p.m. in the Mount Townsend Room, 2400 S. 240th St., in Des Moines.

As an urban sociologist and New York University professor, Noguera looks at ways in which the academic performance of students in urban areas is linked to social and economic factors. He argues that American public schools are floundering, and our current policies are focusing on the symptoms and not the underlying cause—poverty.

Noguera will discuss a new national reform agenda, the Broader, Bolder Approach to Education. This approach focuses on wrap-around services that address hunger and health, parental engagement and supporting teachers through improved instruction.

Noguera is the author of books including “The Trouble with Black Boys…and Other Reflections on Race, Equity and the Future of Public Education,” and “Unfinished Business: Closing the Achievement Gap in Our Nation’s Schools.”

The event is presented in partnership by the League of Education Voters Foundation and the Road Map Project. Event sponsors include Microsoft, Perkins Coie, LLP, the Raikes Foundation and Vulcan.

The League of Education Voters Foundation is a non-partisan, nonprofit organization made up of parents, students and leaders who believe in a quality education from cradle to career.


Talk to us

Please share your story tips by emailing editor@kentreporter.com.

To share your opinion for publication, submit a letter through our website https://www.kentreporter.com/submit-letter/. Include your name, address and daytime phone number. (We’ll only publish your name and hometown.) Please keep letters to 300 words or less.

More in News

Looking north in Kent during the December flooding toward Willis Street with the West Valley Highway on the left and SR 167 on the right. COURTESY PHOTO, City of Kent
People should report home, business flood damages to King County

Fill out online survey for potential funds

File Photo, Kent Reporter
Pedestrian, 42, dies in Kent collision with vehicle

Auburn man killed while trying to cross East Valley Highway Dec. 23

t
Kent crime numbers drop dramatically for second straight year

Commercial burglaries down 60%, vehicle thefts 59% in 2025 compared to 2024

t
Kent Schools Foundation awards $98,000 in grants

Funds 161 proposals developed by 224 educators at 39 schools across Kent School District

U.S. Courthouse in Seattle. COURTESY PHOTO, USDOJ
Auburn man pleads guilty to hate crime on Metro bus in Kent

Made derogatory comments about Black people and assaulted a Black woman in 2024 incident

Bloodworks does mobile donation drives to help community members donate more conveniently, like this event at St. Francis Hospital in Federal Way on Dec. 18. Photo by Keelin Everly-Lang / Sound Publishing
Floods lead to shortage in local blood bank supply

For those looking to help in the aftermath of the floods in… Continue reading

Howard Hanson Dam on the upper Green River helps prevent flooding in Kent, Auburn, Tukwila and Renton. COURTESY FILE PHOTO, Army Corps
Storage behind Hanson Dam helps prevent flooding in Kent

Army Corps leader says dam held back an additional 5 feet of floodwater from levee system

t
Murder case finally ends in Kent after 15 years in court system

Judge says ‘Justice has failed this family’ in 2010 Auburn killing of Kent city employee

The Enumclaw transfer station is accepting flood debris on weekends though Jan. 11, 2026. File photo
King County accepting flood debris for free

Three stations will take your garbage and yard waste on weekends through Jan. 11.

COURTESY PHOTO, City of Kent
Most Kent city streets now open as river levels go down

West Valley Highway, South 277th Street among the roads that reopen

A city Public Works crew member places a sandbag early in the week of Dec. 15. COURTESY PHOTO, City of Kent
Several city of Kent streets remain closed Dec. 19 due to flooding

City road closure list as of Friday afternoon, Dec. 19

t
NB SR 167 reopens in Kent, Auburn | Update

WSDOT announces all lanes are open along 6-mile stretch