Less than one in 10 students in Durham's gifted program are Black despite diverse district, data shows

When Jovania Lewis talks with parents from Durham Public Schools, her advice comes from experience.

"I have gone through different phases of trying to make sure they’re getting academic rigor and being successful in the schools," said Lewis, a mom of three boys all enrolled in the district.

Lewis learned early on that she has to advocate for her children.

"It wasn’t until I was talking to other parents that I found out a referral (to the gifted program) would be possible," she said about her eldest son's experience. "So, there was no teacher referral but a parent referral."

Aside from being a mother to three boys, Lewis is the Executive Director of Empowered Parents in Community or EPiC. The organization provides tools so other parents can advocate for their children, too, and together, disrupt inequalities in the district. At 6 p.m. Tuesday, they're meeting at the People's Solidarity Hub to discuss this topic and teach parents how they can increase access to advanced classes.

One of the places where disparities exist is in advanced coursework. Only 7.8% of Durham students enrolled in the district’s Academically or Intellectually Gifted Program are Black but Black students make up about 40% of the student body, according to the Department of Public Instruction.

Durham's gifted program is more diverse than the state's, statistics show, but less than the national average.

Lewis says making sure children are properly tracked not only leads to better academic outcomes but also social as providing more challenging work reduces the likelihood that students will get bored. And she says that means every student will have a better experience and opportunities.

"We want every child to be successful," she said. "And how we do that is by making sure we’re tapping into that in a way that brings up that brilliance and allow them to really grow as a person and reach their fullest potential."