Social justice advocates plan to prioritize voting rights and reforms to the state’s criminal legal system in the 2025 legislative session.
The ACLU of Alabama released its list of legislative priorities at the end of January, which included protecting free speech and reproductive health, as well as protecting voting rights and the First Amendment.
Along with the list of priorities, the advocacy group has also identified a list of bills it will support and oppose.
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“In the bills that we specifically identified, it was really important to us that we focus on freedom and choice, and expansion of both of those things,” said A’Niya Robinson, policy and organizing director for ACLU of Alabama.
The regular session of the Legislature began on Tuesday. Alabama legislative leaders said they planned to emphasize bills targeting crime and immigration.
Other social justice advocates are looking to steer legislators toward reform instead of the status quo, particularly on voting rights and access.
Voting rights has been at the forefront of priority issues since President Donald Trump falsely alleged that the 2020 election had been manipulated that engineered his loss to the eventual winner, President Joe Biden.
In the years following the election, the Alabama Legislature passed bills banning drop boxes for ballots; barring local governments from accepting private money to administer elections and criminalizing certain forms of absentee ballot assistance.
Following a lawsuit from civil rights groups, a federal judge blocked a portion of the law that limited a third party’s ability to provide ballot assistance, ruling that it violated portions of the Voting Rights Act.
“There is a lot happening within this state that feels very alarming,” Robinson said. “For example, if we take voting rights, there have been numerous bills from sessions past, with each bill there seems to be more and more encroachment, and more and more suppression of people’s right to just cast a ballot.”
The Southern Poverty Law Center also plans to advocate for voting rights bills during the session.
“Alabama voters face a range of obstacles that make voting in-person on Election Day a significant challenge — from onerous voter ID requirements and polling precinct changes to the closure of nearly half of the DMV offices in majority-Black counties that issue the required documentation,” the SPLC stated in its list of priorities.
Democratic legislators have filed bills addressing the issue.
HB 97, filed by Rep. Kenyatte Hassell, D-Montgomery, would allow people the opportunity to fix any issues that election managers find with their absentee ballot affidavit.
Rep. Adline Clarke, D-Mobile, in the Alabama Senate chamber on Tuesday, June 6, 2023. (Stew Milne/Alabama Reflector)
The Senate version, SB 7, automatically restores voting rights for some of those who lost their right to vote in the state. The bill also eliminates the need to provide an excuse to vote by absentee, permit same day voter registration and require the Alabama Secretary of State’s Office to have a statewide voter database. It would also create a Voting Rights Commission in the state that has the power to block measures from local governments that could limit voter access to the ballot box.
Clarke not only filed the companion bill, but also a host of others aimed at expanding people’s right to vote in the state.
The bill, HB 77, would “allow disabled individuals to designate someone to assist them with the absentee voting process, including mailing or hand-delivering their applications and ballots,” she said in a statement she emailed in January.
The ACLU of Alabama will also support bills to reform the criminal legal system.
“When you think about criminal legal reform, you also have to think about the conditions that incarcerated people are living under,” Robinson said. “You think about all the deaths that are occurring and all the violence.”
Civil rights groups also want to see changes to the Alabama Board of Pardons and Paroles. Alabama Arise, for the first time, included reforming the parole system to its legislative priorities.
Thus far, Rep. Chris England, D-Tuscaloosa, had been one of the few legislators who spearheaded efforts to reform the Alabama Board of Pardons and Paroles, frustrated at the low rate that members have granted parole.
As recently as 2017, the parole rate has declined to single digits, and although the grant rate has increased to slightly more than 20% in recent months according to data from the Alabama Bureau of Pardons and Paroles, England believes that reforms are still needed.
HB 40 would create a Criminal Justice Policy Development Council that would establish and implement a validated risk assessment for people who are incarcerated. This assessment would be used for parole guidelines and to create a classification system for people in prison that gauges their risk for criminal behavior.
It would require the parole board to make public its guidelines that it uses when deciding parole, and it mandates that they state a reason if they make a decision that deviates from the parole guidelines.
The bill also allows parole applicants to appeal decisions by the parole board should they be denied parole.
A message was left with England Tuesday seeking comment.
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Alabama Reflector is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Alabama Reflector maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Brian Lyman for questions: info@alabamareflector.com.
www.thecentersquare.com – By Lindsey Henderson | ExcelinEd – (The Center Square – ) 2025-04-18 11:36:00
Harvard University recently announced a remedial algebra course to address some of the mathematical struggles its incoming students are facing.
This isn’t a reflection on the nation’s oldest and most renowned institution of higher learning. Remedial courses aren’t new. Plenty of colleges and universities offer courses geared toward helping students with precalculus and calculus.
The fact that students at a highly competitive school like Harvard may need help getting caught up in a core subject should be a bright red warning light that our K-12 system is falling behind when it comes to math education.
Looking at the most recent scores from the Nation’s Report Card, we know there has been minimal progress for students catching up from COVID learning loss, and most fourth and eighth graders on last year’s exam still performed below pre-pandemic levels, with a widening gap between disadvantaged students and their more resourced peers.
To ensure future generations are prepared for postsecondary success, we need to look for upstream solutions—state-level math policy that we know will help students build the foundation they need.
State leaders can act now on five essential math policies designed to transform math achievement.
First, we know that countries consistently performing above average on international math assessments spend an average of 60 minutes per day on instructional time. In America, Alabama is the only state actively requiring this instruction length, with Maryland recently passing a similar policy that will be implemented in 2026. If every state required 60 minutes of math instruction a day, students would see stronger outcomes.
Second, the adoption of High-Quality Instructional Materials (HQIM) would ensure students have access to grade level content. Surprisingly, this remains a significant challenge across the country, with some research indicating students spend more than 500 hours per school year on assignments not appropriate for their grade level and expectations.
Next, we know that math coaches are an essential investment for all elementary and secondary schools and can be relied upon to lead professional development, facilitate lesson planning, teach model lessons and observe and provide immediate feedback. States like Alabama and Kentucky have implemented strong math coach programs.
Just as we look to NAEP as a national assessment tool, teachers should be implementing regular assessments in their classrooms that provide valuable student progress information and inform future instruction tactics. When assessments are followed by timely interventions to get students back on track, student learning outcomes can dramatically improve.
Finally, states should consider an automatic enrollment policy that ensures students who are mathematically proficient are promoted into higher-level courses in the next school year.
Automatic enrollment policies have proven to lead to a larger number of students successfully taking higher level math courses, including a higher number of low-income and minority students.
These policy essentials are not theoretical; we are seeing them in action in Alabama. Other states, including Indiana, Iowa and Maryland, are following suit.
And that’s a smart move. Alabama’s comprehensive approach to math policy has resulted in remarkable progress in just two years: it remains one of the only states where fourth grade students are back to pre-pandemic levels of math proficiency on the Nation’s Report Card.
By the time our students graduate from high school, they should be proficient in the math skills they need to succeed in higher education, the military or the workforce. We owe it to them to get them to that level in the K-12 system so they are not playing catch-up in subsequent years.
States can help educators and schools achieve that goal by implementing proactive, research-backed policy solutions that ensure all students build a strong foundation in mathematics.
Lindsey Henderson serves as the Math Policy Director at ExcelinEd.
Fifteen Auburn University community members had their visas revoked this week, according to university officials.
Jennifer Wood Adams, executive director of public affairs at Auburn, said in a statement that the visas were revoked by the Department of Homeland Security’s Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Student and Exchange Visitor Program, not the university.
She said the university immediately reached out to those with cancelled visas. The university did not identify the students.
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“Auburn’s Office of International Programs immediately contacted each affected individual to provide assistance and support. Our international students and personnel are valued members of our campus community, and we recognize the significant impact that visa or status revocation will have on them,” the statement said.
The statement also said the university will comply with all laws and cooperate with authorities.
“This is a fluid situation, and the university will monitor it closely and assess its implications,” she said.
According to the Associated Press, at least 1,024 students at 160 colleges, universities and university systems have had their visas revoked or their legal status terminated since late March.
Alireza Doroudi, a University of Alabama graduate student from Iran, was detained in March by ICE. According to the Crimson White, UA’s student news outlet, Doroudi was denied bond on Thursday and now faces deportation.
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Alabama Reflector is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Alabama Reflector maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Brian Lyman for questions: info@alabamareflector.com.
SUMMARY: Panoply 2025, set for April 25-27, will feature a diverse lineup of live music, including rock, R&B, smooth jazz, and local acts such as Alana White and The Red Flags. Headliner Billy Allen and The Polly’s will perform on Friday night. New this year are DJ sets between performances, generating excitement among attendees. The event will offer a range of activities, including food and entertainment. Tickets are $15 for a weekend pass, with parking and logistics advised for ease. The festival’s website and Huntsville social media will provide updates on weather and other event details.
Panoply 2025 is a week from today! Patrice Johnson with Arts Huntsville swung by News 19 at 9am to tease this year’s musical guests!
News 19 is North Alabama’s News Leader! We are the CBS affiliate in North Alabama and the Tennessee Valley since November 28, 1963.
