Education researchers protest Trump policies on steps of Colorado Capitol by Jason Gonzales, Chalkbeat Colorado

Friends:

It was so heartwarming being in solidarity at a rally this past week on the steps of the Denver, Colorado, Capitol building held during the AERA Conference protesting book bans, censorship, gag orders, the dismantling of the U.S. Department of Education and so on. It was such an honor to be among such truly awesome friends and scholars. Here is the line-up of emcees and speakers:

Emcees: Karla Hernandez-Mats, President of United Teachers of Dade, Local 1974, FEA, AFT, NEA, AFL-CIO, Florida

Elizabeth Todd-Breland, historian, education researcher, former school board member, Illinois

Speakers List

• Alexandria Flores, Indigenous activist and community organizer born and raised in Denver: Brief land acknowledgement
• Tom Romero, Professor of Law and History at the University of Denver & Director of the Interdisciplinary Research Institute for the Study of (in) Equality – IRISE, member of AAUP
• Jojo Carranza (they/them), Indigenous organizer and former student in Denver
• Ramon Del Castillo, educator, retired Professor and Researcher, co-author of La Raza Report for Denver Public Schools
• Angela Valenzuela, Co-convener of Black Brown Dialogues on Policy; Education Chair, State of Texas League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC)
• Terrell Morton, Race and STEM Education researcher, Illinois
• Mildred Boveda, Teacher Education and Special Education researcher, Pennsylvania
• Nita Gonzales, nationally recognized Chicana community activist, educator, President/CEO of Escuela Tlatelolco Centro de Estudios, a nationally recognized model for Chicano/Mexicano and indigenous education, Denver, CO.

Many thanks to Drs. Rebecca Tarlau, Elizabeth Todd-Breland, Alice Taylor, Luis Torres, Chalane Lechuga, and CeCe Jordan for their invaluable contributions to organizing this event. A special acknowledgment goes to Dr. Mildred Boveda, whose inspiration and encouragement helped propel this effort, along with a powerful AERA pre-conference event. It merits mention that many of us similarly attended and participated in the Power of Protest rally at the Comparative and International Education Society Conference in Miami, Florida, last summer, making us quite the team. 

It was Mildred who first reached out to me about the Miami protest of all the same kinds of issues as book bans, freedom to teach, freedom to learn and so on. After Miami, Mildred reciprocated by attending and being an observer at our For the Love of Texas Unity Summit. One of the greatest things about being in the academy is the kind of relationships one gets to form and strengthen over the years.

It would be remiss of me not to highlight the meaningful presence and participation of Dr. Ramón del Castillo, retired professor and former Chair of Chicana/o Studies at MSU Denver. Widely recognized for his advocacy in social justice and cultural studies, Dr. del Castillo's work spans research, poetry, and journalism, with a focus on Curanderismo (healing practices) and Indigenous epistemologies. He also co-edited Indigenous Ways of Knowing in Counseling (2020) and contributes regularly to El Semanario. 

Thanks to the support of Dr. Luis Torres, another luminary and respected scholar and advocate for Chicana/o Studies in Colorado, El Semanario published a full-page ad promoting our event.

Last, but not least was featured speaker Nita Gonzales, the late Rodolfo “Corky” Gonzales' daughter and has been instrumental in promoting culturally relevant education in Denver. daughter. Corky was a major Chicano activist during the Chicano Movement of the 1960s and 70s.

In 1970, Nita Gonzales co-founded Escuela Tlatelolco Centro de Estudios with her father and led it for over 40 years as president and CEO. The school became a national model for culturally relevant education, celebrating Chicano/Mexicano and Indigenous heritage. In 2012, President Barack Obama honored her as a "Champion of Change." Today, she continues to support youth initiatives. One is "My Spark Denver," which underscores her lifelong commitment to empowering young people.

I really enjoyed learning about Nita Gonzales and the Chicano Movement in Colorado in this video.

We owe much to our leaders and ancestors who paid dearly for the rights we have today—that are, of course, in peril. We must all do what we can to push back against this extremism in every state, everywhere, where applicable. If we don't continue to defend it seriously, higher education everywhere could soon resemble Texas.

Alongside my other dear colleagues who organized and spoke at this rally, I’m deeply honored to have stood alongside both Dr. Ramón del Castillo and Nita Gonzales. Thank you both for your leadership, unflagging spirit of sacrifice for the community, and for continuing to pave the way for future generations. 

Glad we got some press. Abundant thanks to all of us for doing this and making our education researchers rally a tremendous success.

-Angela Valenzuela

Education researchers protest Trump policies on steps of Colorado Capitol

By 

Jason Gonzales

 | April 25, 2025, 3:47pm CDT

About 125 people gathered at the steps of the Colorado Capitol on Friday, April 25, 2025 in Denver to protest President Donald Trump’s actions involving K-12 and higher education. (Jason Gonzales / Chalkbeat)

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On the steps of the Colorado Capitol, Terrell Morton looked out on the small crowd of fellow researchers and said they gave him hope.

Less than two weeks ago, the Trump administration canceled two of the University of Illinois at Chicago assistant professor’s grants that involved researching how to help Black students in science, technology, engineering, and math.

“It lets me know that I am not alone in this space when it comes to advancing and fighting for justice,” he said.

About 125 researchers and educators from across the nation — along with a small group of students — joined Morton to signal their opposition to President Donald Trump’s decisions about K-12 and higher education. Trump has sought to eliminate diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, cancel research grants, and dismantle the U.S. Department of Education.

The group was in Denver to attend the American Educational Research Association’s annual meeting, which brought together 10,000 researchers from across the country.

Organizers say they saw an opportunity with so many researchers gathered in one spot to hold the rally, which was not part of the AERA conference, in a public space to protest Trump’s efforts to exert control over universities and research.

Elizabeth Todd-Breland, a former Chicago Board of Education member and historian, said with so many researchers in Denver, the hope was to build solidarity at a time when research is under attack.

“It’s going to take all of us working together to push back against those threats,” Todd-Breland said.

Mildred Boveda, who is a Pennsylvania State University associate professor, said researchers typically work behind the scenes to share information and ideas. But now that the federal government wants to limit higher education research and ideas, she said she feels college educators can no longer stay quiet.

“We’re under attack right now by a few who are actually engaging in indoctrination that we’re being falsely accused of,” she said. “We’re trying to set the record straight. We are trying to defend not just educational institutions, but education truth.”

Jason Gonzales is a reporter covering higher education and the Colorado legislature. Chalkbeat Colorado partners with Open Campus on higher education coverage. Contact Jason at jgonzales@chalkbeat.org.