Transcript Powerpoint

Equity in Education:
A Sustainable Approach to
Transformational Change
Lori Ames, Director of Business Services
Percy Brown, Jr., Director of Equity & Student Achievement
Sherri Cyra, Director of Elementary Education
Jalateefa Joe-Meyers, Student Engagement Coordinator
Laura Love, Director of Secondary Education
George Mavroulis, Deputy Superintendent
Jerry Nicholson, Director of Student Services
Mandi Sersch, Director of Bilingual Services
What is equity?
Equality v. Equity v. Reality
MCPASD Beliefs
As public educational leaders for social justice, we firmly
believe the following:
Where We Started
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Internal CREATE team - dissention during the first year
Change in leadership to co-leadership
Unclear vision
Dynamic of judgment and blame
Lack of organization
Uncoordinated professional development that relied upon
external “experts”
Where We Started (cont.)
• Beyond Diversity I-PEG
• All administrators participated.
• Beyond Diversity II
• Several district level administrators participated.
• Conversations with PEG
• Model was not sustainable and was to costly to get support at that time
• Conservative push back at state level
• Board of Education feedback
7 Circle Model—National Equity Project
Philosophy Behind Our Approach
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Lead from the inside-out vs. outside-in
Ensure sustainable model, building the internal capacity within the district
Voluntary - engage those who are interested and passionate (20-60-20)
Race will be a focus, but will include all areas of equity
Focus on systems change, beyond individuals & plans for potential resistance
Develop the voice of the students as a key component
Engage the community and develop partnerships with other agencies
Pillars of Structure
• Student Engagement and Development
• Staff and Board Development
• Community Engagement & Partnerships
• Family Engagement
• Operations
Student Engagement
• Affinity Groups (Black Student Union, SAGE, GSAFE
• Student Voice Union (SVU)
• Social justice leadership group (Members from affinity groups are members)
• Spring Break Trips
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Atlanta, GA (HBCU’s, King Museum, CNN)
Washington, DC (Mt. Vernon, Frederick Douglass, Ron Johnson, Jan Shatkowsky)
Reenactment of the Freedom Rides of 1964 (former SNCC on bus ride)
New York, Harlem, Bronx
• MSAN Student Leadership Conferences
Student Voice Union
• Founded in February 2014-Rotary Ethics Symposium
• 8 students formed to implement an action plan to deal with
racism at MHS.
• Professional development for MHS staff in spring 2014
• 2014-15
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Grade level presentations
Working session with district level administrators (achievement gap)
Professional development for Kromrey staff
EDCamp Presentation and guest speakers in teacher ed. programs at
Edgewood College
Student Voice Union
• 2014-15 (cont.)
• Community forum on racism in June 2015
• Community forum inspired Chief Foulke (Just Mercy and community forum)
• 2015-16 (Membership has grown to 60+ students)
• Grade level presentations for 9th and 10th grade classes
• Follow up discussions in advisory
• Dane County Racial Disparities in Education Conference for HS students
• Over 125 students and educators from 7 area high schools
• Collaboration with BSU
Dane County Racial Disparities in
Education Conference
Middleton High School
Basketball Program
Staff & Board Development
Staff Development
• National Equity Project
• District Professional Development
• Professional Development Partnerships
Board Development
• Book Studies
• Information/Updates
• Board & Superintendent Goals
National Equity Project
• Work with NEP Consultant to Develop & Implement
Charter
• Leading for Equity Institutes
• Development of Trainers and District Equity Institute
• 60+ Staff Members in 2015
• 120+ in 2016 (two institutes)
Internally Developed PD
• Hidden Curriculum Part 1: A Deep Examination of the Racial Binary Code (Black and
White); original course developed with UW-Madison Partner School Network
• Hidden Curriculum Part 2: The Latino Experience with UW-Madison PSN
• District Book Study Groups (choice of four books- 60 staff) District wide
book: Despite the Best Intentions (130 staff)
• Leadership Team Book Studies
• Equity professional development at every leadership team meeting
• Winter “Coffee Talks” to continue equity conversations
• ESL and bilingual professional development for staff and administrators
• MCPASD Equity Google community and Twitter account
Professional Development Partnerships
• WIDA (World-Class Instructional Design & Assessment)
• Illinois Resource Center
• Program Design Process
• National Equity Project
• UW-Madison
• Hidden Curriculum
• Leadership for Social Justice Certificate
• Edgewood
• CTELL, OELA Grants
Board Development
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Book Study--Start Where You Are, But Don’t Stay There, by Rich Milner
Equity Learning/Work Session
Book Study--Gaining on the Gap: Changing Hearts, Minds, and Practice
Annual DELT Updates
• Equality v. Equity Visual--Pivotal Point
Regular Topic of Superintendent’s Reports
Board Goal on Closing the Opportunity Gap
BOE asking for equity proposals
BOE looking to do a third book study, maybe Despite the Best Intentions
Community Engagement & Partnerships
• Middleton Police Department and City of Middleton Officials
• Read Just Mercy and a follow up community forum on racial disparities with guest
panel.
• Community Equity Team was established from the community forum.
• Laura Love and Percy Brown facilitated community equity training
• Standing room only
• Monthly meetings to develop and implement action steps in partnership with
MCPASD.
Community Engagement or Partnerships
• National Equity Project (NEP)
• Minority Student Achievement Network (MSAN)
• UW Madison School of ED
• UW Madison Partner Schools Network
• Middleton Community Equity Team
• Edgewood College
• Madison Area Technical College (MATC)
• Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. &Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority,
Inc.
Family Engagement
•Family Engagement with WIDA
•Bilingual Family Outreach
•Currently a half-time position that serves students and families where English is not their
primary language
•Position will likely be expanded to a full-time position in the 2016/17 school year
• Family Engagement Coordinator
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Proposed position for the 2016/17 school year
Serve to reach out to families of underserved students in a focused and strategic manner. Initially
working with black /African American families at two middle schools and two elementary schools.
Operations
• Diversifying Our Workforce
• Technical Solutions - Above the Line
• Resource Allocation
• Technical Solutions - Above the Line
Diversifying Our Workforce
• Challenge:
• 26% of our student body are students of color
• 6% of our workforce are employees of color
• Response:
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“Grow Your Own” initiative with Edgewood College, Verona Area and Sun Prairie
Area School Districts.
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Review of screening tools and interview questions
• Recruitment of diverse staff and/or staff with a passion for social justice (targeted
vacancy postings, job fairs)
Resource Allocation
• Challenge:
• Resources are typically allocated based on an “equitable” model (based on the same)
verses an “equity” model (based on need).
• Response:
• Board of Education allocation within the budget to increase participation in co-curricular
activities for our under-served student population.
• Technology Access for All Program - Chromebooks made available to students, with
pricing differential based on free/reduced lunch status. (Grade 8 - Grade 12)
Resource Allocation
• Response (cont.):
• Elimination of many student fees at the middle and high school level.
• Addition of staff positions to support our under-served students
• Director of Bilingual Services
• Director of Equity & Student Achievement
• Math Interventionists at the Middle & High School levels
• Addition of a late bus at our Middle & High School levels
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Review of our annual budget process for more equitable resource allocation
Resource Allocation
• Response (cont.):
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Review of our facility scheduling/rental fee procedures to ensure an equitable use
of our buildings.
• Take-Away:
• Resource allocation is when the rubber hits the road. As a result, providing an
environment for deep, meaningful, and respectful conversation is critical.
What have we learned?
• Many entry points into this work - not a linear process
• Need to value the qualitative as much (if not more than) the quantitative;
must change hearts before you can change minds; leading from within; not
a task list; can’t start with technical solutions
• Is not about fixing the students or the families
• Required courage at the top (incl. supt. and board), knowing there would be
resistance
• Our mindset: move slow to move fast
• Is emotionally difficult work and we need to support one another through
the learning and the process
Next Steps...
• Focus on targeted universalism. Creating proposal to share with board of
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education
Student Engagement Coordinator
Consultant
MCPASD Leading for Equity Institute (Summer 2016)
MSAN Institute (April 2016)
Midwest Leading for Equity (March 2016)
The arc of the moral universe is
long but it bends toward
JUSTICE!
-Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QjKX7wPefMM&feature=youtu.be
THANK YOU!
Twitter: @MCPEquity