ALLENTOWN, Pa. — The Allentown School District and The Ortiz Ark Foundation are back on good terms.
On Aug. 23, the district’s solicitor rescinded a cease-and-desist letter sent to the Allentown-based, anti-poverty nonprofit organization more than two years ago.
In April 2022, the district said it would not associate with The Ortiz Ark Foundation after a video surfaced online showing Chief Operating Officer Oscar Ortiz using a racial slur.
As a result, the district banned The Ortiz Ark Foundation from using its facilities, distributing ASD information, using the district's logo and partnering with the district for events.
The cease-and-desist letter discontinued any "actions or interactions" The Ortiz Ark Foundation had with ASD.
The nonprofit issued an apology at the time and said the incident did not reflect its values.
"It's not fair for them to have a cease and desist…that needed to be corrected."Phoebe Harris, ASD school director
In recent months, school Director Phoebe Harris has been a vocal advocate for The Ortiz Ark Foundation, calling on the district to reverse the cease-and-desist letter and allow the foundation to collaborate with ASD once again.
“I’ve been persistent about that because they are still working with our Allentown School District children and families,” Harris said. “They are still providing services for them, and it's not fair for them to have a cease and desist…that needed to be corrected.”
The district rescinded the cease-and-desist letter while continuing to work on administrative regulations for how ASD interacts with outside organizations moving forward.
ASD’s attorney Jeffrey Sultanik said those regulations will likely be reviewed by school directors. It is also likely that the regulations will fall under existing board policy 913, regarding non-school organizations, groups and individuals, he said.
The Ortiz Ark Foundation's youth reach
Jessica Lee Ortiz, executive director of The Ortiz Ark Foundation, said her organization is “relieved and grateful” the district reversed the cease-and-desist decision.
"We remain and never have stopped being committed to the children of this community."Jessica Lee Ortiz, Executive Director of The Ortiz Ark Foundation
“The process for us has been very challenging, and we deeply appreciate the support and understanding that we received during this time,” she said. “We remain and never have stopped being committed to the children of this community.”
Jessica Lee Ortiz and Oscar Ortiz are married.
Jessica Lee Ortiz said her foundation continued serving Allentown youth during the past two years through sports programs and an academic and entrepreneurship program.
However, the lack of connection to ASD impacted how many students the organization could recruit — its youth program enrollment fell by about 120 students.
In the past, guidance counselors would share the foundation’s program information with students. As teens aged out of the programming, the nonprofit struggled to recruit more students.
There are currently about 60 students enrolled in the foundation’s youth programs.
“This is going to allow us to help [students] more once again, just interject ourselves again and begin some programs that were on hold,” Jessica Lee Ortiz said.
The Ortiz Ark Foundation will also begin offering support services to ASD again, as it has done in the past, by providing meals and transportation for student-athletes when needed.
The organization will also step in to help students in need find resources to participate in ASD extracurricular and athletic activities.
“Maybe a kid didn’t join a school baseball team because they didn’t have the proper tools and necessities. That’s where we can say, ‘Here we are again, we have an extra baseball glove,’” Jessica Lee Ortiz said. “Now we can freely have those conversations.”
She said the foundation will also help recruit students in the Allentown community to join district activities.
Learning from a public mistake
The foundation has also learned from her husband's 2022 incident, Jessica Lee Ortiz said.
She and Oscar Ortiz took diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) training.
"I would have no reservations of recommending him to, especially the Allentown School District."Guillermo Lopez, Jr., local DEI consultant, said of his mentee Oscar Ortiz
They also learned more about leadership through the National Coalition Building Institute (NCBI), such as what behaviors and language are appropriate when working in urban, low-income communities.
Guillermo Lopez Jr., a local DEI consultant and a director with the NCBI, served as a mentor to Oscar Ortiz throughout 2022 and 2023.
Lopez said Oscar Ortiz learned from his mistake two years ago. He has improved his listening and conflict-resolution skills.
“I would have no reservations of recommending him to, especially the Allentown School District,” Lopez said. “To me he’s a model of redemption, of something went wrong, and he has worked hard to make it right.”
