Read On, Dream On placed identity-affirming stories in Brookline’s Little Free Libraries, helping ensure our shared public spaces reflected the lived experiences of our community. At a time when diverse storytelling was being challenged, the campaign fostered connection, curiosity, and belonging, inviting neighbors to see themselves and each other in the stories they shared. BRJE partnered with the Brookline Booksmith to source titles that celebrate culture, history, family, and identity across ages.

When the Office of Educational Equity was slated for elimination, BRJE — alongside the Brookline Community Foundation, the Brookline Asian American Family Network, and the Brookline Justice League — helped lead a community campaign that raised $188,000 to preserve it. The effort affirmed broad public support for sustained racial equity work in Brookline’s schools.

The Rising Together Spring Mixer brought community members, educators, and advocates together to support the effort to preserve the Office of Educational Equity. Featuring Assistant Director of Educational Equity Cristina Hernández and Claire Galloway-Jones, the district’s Executive Director of Educational Equity, the gathering discussed the importance of preserving racial equity infrastructure in Brookline’s schools.

BRJE mobilized the community to prevent the return of armed police officers in schools, highlighting evidence that school policing disproportionately impacts students of color and students with disabilities. The campaign affirmed that real student safety comes from care and support—not surveillance.

“The Downside of APs” Forum convened students, educators, and community members to explore how academic tracking and AP access shape racial disparities. The conversation illuminated how opportunity gaps are created and how schools can expand access to rigorous, affirming learning for all students.