January 14, 2019 – Public Advocates was mentioned in a Daily Bulletin op-ed on how the Pomona Unified School District could spend an extra $6.5 million. The op-ed author, Alex Piazza, argues that those dollars should be spent on participatory budgeting projects. Participatory budgeting is a way to directly engage community members in the budget process. Parents and students would propose, deliberate, vote, and decide which projects in their community to fund. According to the article, school projects funded using participatory budgeting have included: college visits for low-income students; firefighter youth apprenticeship programs; and community gardens on site or near schools.
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