June 2, 2020

Dear San Rafael City Schools Community,

We are faced with challenges today in our country that have depleted our strength, energy and, for many of us, our sense of security and well-being. First the coronavirus silently crept upon us, leaving us feeling powerless, confused, vulnerable, and scared, not knowing when a vaccine will be found and wondering if we will ever return to normalcy. Now on top of this pandemic, there are g protests of a different kind and magnitude on our streets and cities, resulting from the unjust murder of a Black man named George Floyd in Minneapolis. In some instances, peaceful protest marches crying out for peace and justice and an end to racism have turned violent and ugly as businesses are looted, cars set on fire and people injured. Once again many of us are feeling powerless, confused, vulnerable, isolated and scared, but now for a different reason.

Our three San Rafael City Schools core values are equity, community and joy. Equity is our moral imperative, our obligation and our responsibility. But for too long, many of us, including myself, have spoken the equity talk but clearly not walked the equity walk - at least not on a regular basis, not with real commitment, and not backed up with action. As a White male superintendent who has grown up with many advantages in my life, I have the benefit of having a powerful position of influence, and yet I have not spoken up often enough to combat, call out or challenge racism when I see it. Yes, I have read many equity books, attended numerous trainings and workshops and participated in equity walks in our schools. But while I dab my toe gingerly in the equity pool, sometimes deciding that the water is too cold, our students of color continue to fall behind their white peers academically, our students and teachers of color continue to feel isolated and not fully accepted in our schools, and resentment builds. Nothing really changes. Perhaps this is why the rage and indignation are so raw amongst our Black brothers and sisters: they have heard the promises of change too many times before and seen disappointment too many times.

Inequity in our society and our schools has been festering for decades, and the results are playing out today in the demonstrations occurring across the country. The causes are many and the solutions are complex and difficult. Race is a very difficult subject to discuss, but we must - especially with our children, who are our future. If we really want to really change the culture and climate in our society and our schools, we must get off the sidelines. We must be willing to make equity our top priority every single day and to take action.

And we must listen. Our students of color know what is going on, they know how they are experiencing school, they know what the problems are, and they know how to help us solve them. All we have to do is listen to them, really listen, and then mobilize student voice into action. I believe they can show us the way forward with hope and change if we will take the time to hear what they have to say.

Equity is the key, for without this value we cannot have community or joy, our other core values. Inclusion and participation for all are the cornerstones of community, and we must ensure that all voices are heard, especially those that are often left out. And joy? Clearly there can be no joy, no delight, no pleasure for anyone when so many people of color are feeling pain and sorrow and hurt.

I realize that while I may often be confused, vulnerable and scared, I am certainly not powerless. I am actually powerful, and not just because I am a superintendent, and not just because I am White and not just because I am male. I am powerful because, like anyone, when I am grounded in my core values, when I know where I stand and who I am, and when I act out of the courage of my convictions, I am incredibly strong. In San Rafael, I believe this is what we can teach our children. We all have strength and power to impact our world in a positive way, and we have the obligation to do so. Now is the time to listen closely, and to take action based on our values to finally ensure equity for all. Standing on the sidelines will no longer do-- too much is at stake, and in our community and throughout our country, our students’ lives and well-being depend on it.

Thank you for partnering with us in this challenging but critical work.

Sincerely,

Jim Hogeboom

Superintendent

File attachments:

6-2-20 to COMMUNITY - English (1).pdf

As our Superintendent Jim Hogeboom mentioned, equity is our moral imperative. Experts in the field of social justice have suggested ways in which school communities can address implicit bias, gaps in achievement and attatinment, and racism.

• Personal awareness of the problem

• Leadership teams provide professional development to staff

• Staff incorporates culturally relevent teaching practices

• Staff explicitly teaches about race and equity

• Communities continue to hold schools accountable for best practices and systemic work to close achievement gaps and address equity and acts of bias

At Sun Valley, we are tasked with listening, collaborating, and putting action plans in place. Many of our families say that they want to talk about race and inequity with their children, but they do not know where to begin. We know that people of color do not have the luxury of deciding when to talk with their children about race. We do incorporate equity and race in our school wide social-emotional learning, and our teachers work to make sure that they include culturally relevent curriculum in their classrooms. You can support our intitial efforts with the following resources: