Declaration NAACP, NAACP et al. v. DeVos, No. 1:20-cv-01996 (D.D.C.), Doc. 36-8 (August 11, 2020)

Summary

Declaration of Victor Goode, Interim National Education Director for the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), in NAACP et al. v. DeVos, Case No. 1:20-cv-01996 (DLF), U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, Document 36-8, filed August 11, 2020, in support of the plaintiff's motion for preliminary injunctive relief or, in the alternative, for summary judgment. It describes the NAACP as a membership-based, civil rights advocacy organization with over 2,200 units across the country. It states that the interim final rule issued July 1, 2020 will require the NAACP to divert significant resources, including staff time, and to revise its toolkits, PowerPoints and trainings. The declaration states it was executed on August 10, 2020.

Summary drafted by a model from the document's text below and checked by script against that text before publication. It is a navigation aid, not a reading of what the document proves. Where AI is used

Cite this document

“Declaration NAACP, NAACP et al. v. DeVos, No. 1:20-cv-01996 (D.D.C.), Doc. 36-8 (August 11, 2020).” Original at storage.courtlistener.com. Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/declaration-naacp-naacp-et-al-v-devos-no-1-20-cv-01996-d-d-c-doc-36-8-9bd1413c3a/, SHA-256 b791e7311bf4971eeae89ced386a5545e0849b9dc7a71b4260e5100e1443464c.

Full text

Case 1:20-cv-01996-DLF Document 36-8 Filed 08/11/20 Page 1 of 7

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR THE
ADVANCEMENT OF COLORED PEOPLE Case No. 1:20-cv-01996 (DLF)
(NAACP), et al.,

Plaintiffs,

vs.

ELISABETH “BETSY” D. DEVOS, in her official
capacity as the United States Secretary of Education,
and the UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF
EDUCATION,

Defendants.

DECLARATION OF VICTOR GOODE IN SUPPORT OF PLAINTIFF’S MOTION FOR
PRELIMINARY INJUNCTIVE RELIEF OR, IN THE ALTERNATIVE, FOR
SUMMARY JUDGMENT

1. My name is Victor Goode. I am the Interim National Education Director for the

National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (the “NAACP”). In this role, I

lead training, resources, and other support for NAACP units on implementation, monitoring, and

enforcement of federal education law and ensuring quality public education. I have been with

the NAACP since 2004, including in roles in the Office of General Counsel, and I have led the

NAACP’s Education Department since 2014. I am an attorney licensed to practice in Texas and

Ohio. The NAACP is a plaintiff in this lawsuit against Secretary of Education Elisabeth “Betsy”

D. DeVos (the “Secretary”) and the United States Department of Education (the “Department”)

challenging the Department’s interim final rule issued July 1, 2020 entitled CARES Act

Programs; Equitable Services to Students and Teachers in Non-Public Schools, 85 Fed. Reg.

39,479 (the “Rule”), and corresponding federal regulations, see generally 34 C.F.R. § 76.665.

1
Case 1:20-cv-01996-DLF Document 36-8 Filed 08/11/20 Page 2 of 7

2. The NAACP’s principal address is 4805 Mount Hope Drive, Baltimore,

Maryland, 21215. The NAACP telephone number is (410) 580-5777.

3. Founded in 1909, the NAACP’s mission is to secure the political, education,

social, and economic equality of rights in order to eliminate race-based discrimination and ensure

the health and well-being of all persons. Our principal areas of advocacy are education, health

equity, criminal justice, civic engagement, climate/environmental justice, and economic

opportunity, among other issues. The Education Committee of the NAACP’s national board, in

concert with education chairs and leaders from across the Association, has focused our education

advocacy on ensuring that all disadvantaged students and students of color are on the path to

college and/or a successful career through access to great teaching, equitable resources, and

challenging curricula. We work to increase public school funding for students who need the

most resources; address the literacy crisis; close the “digital divide” in schools and homes

resulting from inadequate access to technology; and improve the treatment of Black students in

education.

4. The NAACP is a membership-based, civil rights advocacy organization, with over

2,200 units across the country. The NAACP’s national membership includes individuals from

across the country who would be irreparably harmed by the Department’s illegal Interim Final

Rule, including parents or grandparents of minor children attending Title I and non-Title I public

schools in districts that either (1) stand to lose substantially increased amounts of CARES Act

funds to private-school students, or (2) will be forced to accept significant restrictions on their

use of CARES funds. Some of these members include:

a. Teresa Haley and her minor grandchild, T.M., for whom she is the legal

guardian, are from Springfield, Illinois. T.M. attends Southeast High School,

a Title I school, in School District No. 186, a district that contains both Title I

2
Case 1:20-cv-01996-DLF Document 36-8 Filed 08/11/20 Page 3 of 7

and non-Title I schools. Under the Department’s unlawful interpretation of

the CARES Act contained in the Rule, T.M.’s school will either receive

decreased funds or be unable to spend the CARES Act funds for critical

services.

b. Kimberly Griffin and her minor child, C.G., are from Ocala, Florida. C.G.

attends Legacy Elementary, a Title I school, in Marion County School

District, a district that contains both Title I and non-Title I schools. Under the

Department’s unlawful interpretation of the CARES Act contained in the

Rule, C.G.’s school will either receive decreased funds or be unable to spend

the CARES Act funds for critical services.

c. Eugene Howard and his minor children, M.R. and E.H., are from Houston,

Texas. E.H. attends Codwell Elementary School, a Title I school, in Houston

Independent School District, a district that contains both Title I and non-Title

I schools. M.R. attends Rodeo Palms Junior High, a Title I school, in Alvin

Independent School District, a district that contains both Title I and non-Title

I schools. Under the Department’s unlawful interpretation of the CARES Act

contained in the Rule, both M.R. and E.H.’s schools will either receive

decreased funds or be unable to spend the CARES Act funds for critical

services.

d. Jabari Jones and his minor children, J.J. and J.J., are from Indianapolis,

Indiana. J.J. attends North Central High School, a Title I school, and J.J.

attends Eastwood Middle School, a Title I school, both in the Metropolitan

School District of Washington Township, a district that contains both Title I

and non-Title I schools. Under the Department’s unlawful interpretation of

3
Case 1:20-cv-01996-DLF Document 36-8 Filed 08/11/20 Page 4 of 7

the CARES Act contained in the Rule, both J.J. and J.J.’s schools will either

receive decreased funds or be unable to spend the CARES Act funds for

critical services.

5. The NAACP works to advance its education priorities for Black students, many of

whom are overrepresented in school districts that are already underfunded. The NAACP

supports our state and local units across the country as they work with their Governors and

Superintendents to ensure equitable and adequate school funding and fair access to

resources. Sometimes the NAACP turns to the Courts to address school funding and fair access

to resources.

6. The Rule limits the public funding available to school districts at a time when

they need resources the most, exacerbating other key education issues the NAACP works to

address, including the literacy crisis, the digital divide, and how Black students are often

perceived, treated, educated, and disciplined. The timing and substance of this Rule make our

work more difficult.

7. The NAACP works to ensure equity in implementation of the federal Every

Student Succeeds Act (“ESSA”), Pub. L. 114–95, 20 U.S.C. 1001 et seq. For example, we

engage our members with our ESSA toolkit, which serves to equip NAACP units with the

knowledge to help constituents access the benefits promised under ESSA to improve schools

within their jurisdiction. This toolkit also provides information on civil rights approaches to

addressing education equity challenges, with the aim of improving public schools in every

neighborhood through a combination of local, state, and national activism and community

engagement.

8. These ESSA tools include supporting the Title I requirement for parental

engagement, by working with Title I school Principals to organize Title I parent organizations

4
Case 1:20-cv-01996-DLF Document 36-8 Filed 08/11/20 Page 5 of 7

and/or encouraging NAACP units to establish their own Title I parent subcommittee within their

state or local Education Committees. The robust, meaningful parental engagement envisioned

under Title I is made more difficult by the pandemic, and many schools will face financial

challenges if school districts do not also receive the funding they are entitled to under the

CARES Act or if CARES Act funds have severe spending restrictions.

9. The Rule will require that the toolkits, PowerPoints and trainings we use to teach

our members how to advance education equity will need to be revised to address the new

challenges imposed by the Rule.

10. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the NAACP has worked with our units to

ensure that State Governors and Superintendents of local educational agencies (“LEAs”) can

address the digital divide during school closings, and that where States and school districts do re-

open schools, they provide parents with a high-quality, equally accessible, public, non-charter

virtual options. The Rule diverts resources that districts need to address these concerns and

harms the NAACP’s ability to work effectively with districts to ensure that all children’s

educational needs are met.

11. The Rule will necessitate that the NAACP divert significant resources, including

staff time, to ensuring the mission of the NAACP is carried out for students who are

disproportionately impacted by COVID-19.

12. We will need to also engage, through our units, our members who serve on school

boards, who represent school districts as administrators, who teach in school districts, and/or

who work in districts in other capacities to navigate the foreseeable impacts of difficult choices

presented by the Rule. This will likely include producing trainings for these members, especially

those working in severely under-resourced districts. These trainings may cover the

consequences of each option under the Rule, assessing the impact of the Rule on students in a

5
Case 1:20-cv-01996-DLF Document 36-8 Filed 08/11/20 Page 6 of 7

district, the requirements of “supplement, not supplant,” the need for a new calculation method

for equitable services, and the challenge of how to provide equitable services to all private school

students.

13. Additional trainings will need to be conducted for members who are families and

students disproportionately impacted by COVID-19. We will need to spend more time with

State and local units to encourage them to advocate for transparency and engagement by school

districts with communities, and Black and other communities of color. We will also need to

educate and push districts to educate people in these communities about the consequences of

diverted or restricted funds imposed by the Rule, and the impact those diversions or restrictions

will have on our members.

14. The NAACP’s units and members across the country are facing many issues

during the pandemic, including many members serving as front-line, “essential” workers facing

risks to their health and safety, other members losing employment due to the economic crisis

resulting from the pandemic, and the impact on incarcerated people, including youth in secure

State juvenile facilities, across the country who face extreme health risks.

15. The Rule will require the NAACP to spend less time addressing these crises in

order to support its units who are navigating the difficult decision imposed on their school

districts by the Rule, districts that are struggling with limited resources to ensure students

continue to learn, receive school meals, and access technology, health, and mental health

supports during the pandemic. This may require assistance from staff from other Program areas

(Health, Criminal Justice, Economics), including the Legal Department and outside counsel, to

assist the Education Department given the complicated nature of the Rule. But this will divert

scarce resources from Legal and/or other areas. Or it may require hiring a consultant or

additional staff.

6
Case 1:20-cv-01996-DLF Document 36-8 Filed 08/11/20 Page 7 of 7

I declare under penalty of perjury under that the foregoing is true and correct. Executed

on August 10, 2020.

Victor Goode, Esq.

File and source

File: 36-att8-declaration-naacp.pdf
Size: 66,204 bytes
SHA-256: b791e7311bf4971eeae89ced386a5545e0849b9dc7a71b4260e5100e1443464c
Our copy: 36-att8-declaration-naacp.pdf
Original: storage.courtlistener.com