November 10, 2025
Like many families, mine has struggled with school since COVID closed my son’s elementary in rural Appalachia in March 2020. That year, students never returned from spring break. My child had a wonderful teacher—and we saw her in person only one more time: when she drove to our house to bring him a photo album of their short year together, and tearfully gave it to us while standing at a safe distance on the porch. She had made albums for every one of her students.
That kind of dedication is rare, especially in the face of the obstacles, hostility, and outright targeting faced by American educators today. But after several years of struggle, my family is in another school that understands the difficulty and cares for them deeply. So, after my son’s entire high school took the college entrance exams and pre-tests this year? The school sent everyone home at 11 am. Students needed to recover from the stress. They needed empathy from their school—and they got it.
In this installment of Justice This Week, we’re asking: what do people need? From educators forced into the dangerous position of shielding students and their campus communities from ICE to nonprofits facing down climate disasters, the first step to help is usually listening and meeting people where they can meet you, even if it’s on their front porch.
Dr. Alison Stine
Climate Justice
Senior Editor
