ABC11/WTVD-TV Raleigh Durham Addresses Inequity in Education in an On-Air Special Followed by a Live Virtual Town Hall

‘The Racial Divide: Inequity in Education’ Half-Hour Special Airs Thursday, July 23 at 5:30 p.m. EDT, and the One-Hour Virtual Town Hall at 6:00 p.m. EDT

Exclusively Stream Town Hall Live at ABC11.com, ABC11’s Facebook Live and YouTube and ABC11’s connected TV apps on Amazon FireTV, Android TV, Apple TV, Roku

ABC11/WTVD -TV Raleigh Durham presents a 30-minute special, “The Racial Divide: Inequity in Education,” Thursday, July 23 (5:30 – 6:00 p.m. EDT), with continued coverage livestreamed in a one-hour town hall live at ABC11.com (6:00-7:00 p.m. EDT). Hosted by ABC11 anchors Joel Brown and Amber Rupinta, the special takes a look at racial inequity in education and other challenges facing underrepresented communities that have been heightened during the pandemic.

The 30-minute special takes an in-depth look at racial inequity in education; digital divide, which addresses the hardship in digital learning; food insecurities among economically disadvantaged students; and racial disparities surmounting in Latino communities. Historically, these issues have existed in communities of color, however, the special will examine how the pandemic has exacerbated these difficulties.

Brown and Rupinta will interview numerous parents, administrators and nonprofit organizations, who are coping and attempting to manage the rising needs of the community, in particular its children.

Immediately following the special, ABC11 anchor Joel Brown will host a livestreamed, virtual town hall on ABC11.com at 6:00 p.m. The town hall will feature local experts, who will continue the conversation on inequity in education, and the financial and mental health impact on families in communities of color.

The panel will include the following:

Dr. Nerissa Price, psychiatrist, joins the panel to discuss the impact on children’s mental health.
Letha Muhammad is the director at Education Justice Alliance.
Turquoise Parker is a third-grade teacher at Durham Public Schools and is the current VP of Durham Association of Educators.
Tru Pettigrew is a diversity and inclusion expert speaker and author of “Millennials Revealed.”

The one-hour virtual town hall will take place on Thursday, July 23 at 6:00 p.m. EDT, and exclusively stream live on ABC11’s Facebook Live, YouTube, ABC11’s app, and ABC11’s connected TV apps on Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, Android TV and Roku.

About ABC11/WTVD-TV Raleigh-Durham
ABC11/WTVD-TV Raleigh-Durham is an ABC owned television station serving the Research Triangle Region of Durham, Raleigh, Chapel Hill and Fayetteville, an area collectively known for its technology companies and scholarly institutions. In 2017, WTVD transformed into a multiplatform newsroom as the first stations selected for the UNC Knight-Lenfest Newsroom Initiative, modernizing the station and maximizing its reach and engagement across linear broadcast and streaming video on demand. ABC11 is proudly the broadcast partner for the Raleigh Christmas Parade, the largest local event in the region, and the news gathering partner with the News & Observer, the region’s paper of record.

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