Introducing 5C! Get To Know Us!

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When Tana Monteiro was growing up in the East Bay, she felt lost in the system.

Her mom was a single parent, and the family moved around a little bit. Every morning, Tana’s mom would leave for work at 6 am and not back home until after 6 pm at night. She was too busy providing for the family to attend any of Tana’s school events.

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“No one was advocating for me,” Tana said. “The job I have now as a family engagement coordinator at a school did not exist.”

“When I was growing up, I had a hard time,” she said. “A lot of things have changed since then and some have not. That’s why I’m in education now.”

She’s now a mother of four, a fierce educational equity advocate and she says that being the Family and Community Engagement Coordinator at Richmond College Prep Schools (RCP) is her dream job.

“I know how hard it was for my mom and other families and how hard it can be,” Tana said, “and I want to make it easier. Whatever I can do to make sure kids are thriving and parents have what they need to support their kids.”

Tana understands the power of advocacy, which is why she’s helping to start a new organization called 5C: The Contra Costa County Charter Coalition.

Tana said 5C is needed to give charter school communities in Contra Costa County a way to unite and utilize the power of families. “It should have been existing a long time ago,” Tana said of 5C. “But we need to come together and get organized now, more than ever.”

Tana always planned to be a stay-at-home-mom and make sure her kids got all the support she wasn’t able to experience as a child. She was a PTA mom and was volunteering 2-3 times per week at RCP when they asked her if she wanted to work there. “My goal and my mission is to make it so the kids can be happy when they come to school,” Tana said, “and families can feel safe when their kids are at school.”

Tana’s children have attended district and charter schools. She walked two miles – each way – each day to get her son to a quality district school and away from the failing, dangerous neighborhood school. “Parents should have choices,” Tana said. “It's a human right, be safe and learn in a safe, clean environment, it’s a right. If your neighborhood school is not providing a joyful learning environment, then you should have a choice.”

Tana said her hopes are the 5C will grow into a powerful coalition and a way for charter school communities to unite and grow stronger. She’s eager to welcome new parents and connect with parents at other schools as well.

“Just being able to connect with other parents and staff, and hear how it’s going at other schools will be valuable,” Tana said. “And becoming a part of the wider community.”  

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