![](https://www.healthjusticect.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/Education-System-300x269-250x200.png)
By now, the facts of Tanya McDowell’s story are familiar to many in Connecticut and across the country– a mother wanting the best for her kindergarten-aged son, and a school district willing to charge the mother with a crime for illegally sending her son to a Norwalk school that clearly outperformed the options in Bridgeport, which was her last known residence. As awareness of the social determinants of health in the movement against health disparities are more recognized, education must be acknowledged as one of the most pivotal, and perhaps, the most actionable for policymakers and concerned communities wishing to change the trajectory of racial and ethnic health disparities.