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"The bill, authored by Councilmember Christina Henderson (I-At Large), would ramp up the consequences for a number of traffic violations by allowing the city to use its cameras to do what police officers can already do when they pull someone over, which is assess points on their driver’s license."

Councilmember Christina Henderson Introduces Legislation to Streamline DCPS Staff and Volunteer Background Checks

“Meanwhile, at-large council member Christina Henderson introduced a bill to streamline the D.C. Public Schools hiring process.”

“Relatedly, on Nov. 17…[the] human services committee will vote on [a bill] from Councilmember Christina Henderson (I-At Large) to increase the monthly payment for participants in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).”

“However, about 25,000 participate in the My School DC lottery. In this system, families rank their top 12 choices before an algorithm assigns them to a school. It means students have access to specialized programs (such as language immersion or extracurricular activities) but also that students may have longer commutes. What that journey looks like and whether they can take full advantage of their school options has a lot to do with transportation equity. ‘We like to talk about choice, but the reality is that if you can’t get to those choices, then it’s not really a choice,’ said at-large Councilmember Christina Henderson.”

In this Hearing the Council interview, we talk with At-Large Councilmember Christina Henderson about the impact that the elimination of national abortion rights (via the overturning of Roe v. Wade) will have here in the District, today and in the future. We also discuss the recent viral tweet regarding future educational requirements for DC's early childhood education workers, including its legislative history, motivation, and the nitty-gritty of what is required, and of whom.

Under an act introduced by at-large Councilmember Christina Henderson in January, the Attendance Zone Boundaries Amendment Act of 2022, redistricting would occur every ten years (due next in 2024). “I am bracing myself for a very ugly conversation because it brings out the ugly in people when you talk about education, housing, diversity, and ownership,” said Henderson. “Which is strange because we’re in a progressive city, right? People say they like diversity but when you start having these conversations, there are limits to how much diversity works for you.”

We’re just over a week away from the start of D.C.’s school year, and students and staff will be required to submit a negative COVID-19 test before returning to the classroom. Plus, courts upheld a D.C. requirement for early childhood educators to have certain higher education degrees. D.C. Councilmember Christina Henderson (I-At Large) joins us to talk about the latest education news and the District’s handling of monkeypox.

A four-year legal battle over D.C.’s new requirements that many child care workers get a college degree has seemingly come to an end. Last week the three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for D.C. dismissed a long-running lawsuit challenging the education requirements, which were first adopted in 2016 and start taking effect later this year after a series of delays. Under the new rules, directors of child care centers will need a bachelor’s degree in early education, teachers will need an associate’s degree in early education, and assistant teachers and caregivers in home-based daycares will need a Child Development Associate’s credential.

Last week, Council member Christina Henderson (I-At Large) said she had asked D.C. Health for a breakdown of monkeypox cases by race, gender and ward, and had pushed for the information to be published and regularly updated online.

This legislation works in tandem with the Enhancing Reproductive Health Protections Amendment Act of 2022, recently introduced by Council member Christina Henderson (I-At Large), which protects access to self-managed abortion in D.C. It also builds on three bills introduced by Council member Robert C. White Jr. (D-At Large) that require insurance coverage for abortion without cost-sharing and that protect practitioners’ licenses and insurance from attack.

In DC’s 2020 general election, the at-large council seats were won with only 26% and 15% of the vote — incumbent councilmember Robert White and Christina D. Henderson, respectively.