Camden School Board Meetings Will Now Live Broadcast in Spanish

CAMDEN, NJ — Going forward Camden school board meetings will be live broadcast in Spanish, a first for the district.

The Camden City School District (CCSD) comprises 54% Latino students - with 30% speaking primarily Spanish at home. 

“Esto es muy importante para nuestra gente,” Falio Leyba-Martinez told TAPinto Camden on Friday after the announcement. “This is very important for our people."

"They should be getting the information at the same time as everyone else. I also see it as an investment for our future. We see the number of Latinos growing in this country, and they should be given priority locally as well," he continued.

The city, where 51% of the population is Hispanic, recently swore in its first Hispanic police chief and added another Latino board member in the recent election. 

Leyba-Martinez, the first Dominican to be elected to the school board, said he has worked toward this effort in some capacity since he joined the board.

Prior to today, Spanish families could call a phone number during the monthly meetings to hear a translation. However, if they missed the live stream they could not return later (like the English version) to hear district updates.  

The Latino Spirit will provide the Spanish broadcast. The Princeton-based online hub has also streamed live translations of Gov. Phil Murphy’s press conference during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Camden residents will be able to see the broadcasts streamed on Facebook without a login or password. 

The Latino Spirit CEO, Diego Maya, noted that a team of about five people are involved for the CCSD operation. He called the streams “broadcasts on steroids.”

“As they are having the meeting we are broadcasting parallel, a signal in Spanish in another Facebook page with their volume lower and our employees translating. On top of that, we make the experience attractive by adding graphics, lots of color, scrolling text...and other [elements].” 

Maya said The Latino Spirit has provided approximately 90 broadcasts since its inception, reaching upwards of 2 million people. 

The Camden school district broadcasts will be the first time the organization will provide a Spanish live stream for a local school board meeting in New Jersey.

“We strive to be an inclusive community for all families,” said Superintendent Katrina McCombs. “Today’s announcement is an important step in ensuring all voices are able to participate fully in our advisory board meetings. In the weeks and months ahead, the advisory board will provide guidance and feedback on critical issues related to our District’s continued progress, and I’m grateful we are now able to better accommodate our Spanish-speaking families."

The Camden Education Fund (CEF) provided $6,000 to make the partnership possible.”