Equity & Excellence

All students shall experience an environment characterized by high expectations, acceptance, respect, and support to become invested in the pursuit of learning and excellence without fear of threat, humiliation, danger or disregard. Excellence shall become the norm for all regardless of background or demographics. Our schools shall embrace uniqueness, strengths, and challenges with support, understanding, expectations, and encouragement to succeed.

Key Strategies

• Maintain focus on early literacy efforts to ensure every student enters fourth grade reading at or above level.
  

• Expand supports for struggling readers in grades 6-12.
  

• Utilize data (state assessments, local assessments, universal screeners, and teacher observations) to inform decisions about student needs.
  

• Expand learning opportunities beyond the school day to provide targeted academic supports for struggling students.
  

• Establish/strengthen and communicate a student assistance protocol to address attendance, behavioral, and mental health needs (e.g. pre-referral and intervention).
  

• Identify and scale up interventions and supports at Tier 1, 2, and 3 to address academics, mental health, attendance, discipline, and other barriers to learning.
  

• Conduct team school visits and equity walks with positive school climate look-fors.
  

• Assess the experience of racial/ethnic minorities, students with disabilities, LGBTQ+, students in the Tinsley Program, socio-economically disadvantaged, and other target groups through surveys, focus groups, and other forums.
  

• Monitor and address disproportionality in out-of-school suspensions and provide targeted support to sites with disparate rates of suspension.
  

• Implement equity-focused prosocial disciplinary responses (e.g. restorative and culturally responsive, schoolwide positive behavior interventions and supports, SEL, and trauma-informed approaches) and related professional learning.
  

• Increase utilization and response of Student and Family Engagement Specialists at each site.
  

• Establish ongoing partnership with the City of Palo Alto to advance equity initiatives city-wide.
  

• Ensure representation and parent/community feedback from diverse groups.
  

• Provide instructional materials and learning opportunities for staff that reflect multiple perspectives and help them incorporate diverse viewpoints in their instruction.
  

• Ensure diverse representation and parent/community feedback to identify needs and amplify the voices of identified groups.

How will we measure progress? (Key Performance Indicators)

• Increase percentage of students in identified subgroups (African American, PI, Latinx, SED, SWD, EL and VTP) who meet expectations in the following areas as compared year to year: attendance, state and local assessment, A-G completion, Advanced Placement / advanced class enrollment, college and career ready status.
  

• Improve student achievement of historically underserved student groups as measured by SBAC, D/F lists, A-G completion, and College & Career readiness (CCI).
  

• Decrease in disproportionate disciplinary school and class removals.
  

• Increase in percentage of historically underrepresented staff, students, and families who report a positive school environment characterized by equitable treatment and perceptions of being valued, respected and cared for by school staff (Measure: CHKS Survey, Climate Surveys, disaggregated discipline data, attendance).
  

• Increased access and utilization of help seeking behaviors (Survey, Wellness Centers, and CASSY reports).
  

• Increase participation in career-themed pathways through internships, dual enrollment, and certifications.
  

• Increase availability and access to parent education and support to improve knowledge/skill to support student learning (Measure: Parent Survey, increase in number of parent info nights, increase number of attendees at info nights).
  

• All secondary site administrators will complete a foundational course in the elements of Universal Design for Learning.
  

• Create common understanding and build capacity of secondary staff about designing lessons with student needs in mind. (PD in Oct, Jan, March - pre/post survey)
  

• Development of summer learning opportunity to provide targeted support for students transitioning to middle school who do not demonstrate readiness for the next grade level in mathematics.