2017-18
Ensuring educational & racial equity policy adoption; building-based racial equity teams created
framing context
What leadership moves do I implement to disrupt and dismantle inequitable practices and systems so that all students have equitable access to resources and achieve at high levels?
marzano instructional framework focus
August 8th
The leadership team decided to break from past practice and to select a single Marzano instructional standard that best supported our racial equity work:
3.2 Planning and preparing for the needs of all students
Professional Learning Community leaders' summit
August 23rd
Adaptive Leadership in the School by Dr. Nikum Pon and Maiah Merino
Vashon Island School District Equity Journey
Data shared as an example of the achievement gap
Feedback from the PLC Leaders
August 29th
Empathic, equitable, effective instruction cultivates powerful learning for all of our students. Staff were offered the following options specifically focused on racial equity:
Adaptive Leadership in the School by Dr. Nikum Pon and Maiah Merino
This scholar-practitioner and experiential learning workshop is designed to deepen your racial equity lens to better understand essential leadership challenges in racial equity work. You’ll apply some key principles and techniques of Adaptive Leadership, adapted framework from Ron Heifetz at Harvard Kennedy School of Government, to lead with racial equity in your school, particularly shifting instructional practices and collaborating together to cultivate the condition for students to flourish.
Instructional Practices Alignment: Marzano 1.4, 3.2
Aligning and Launching the Year through the Lens of Marzano & Culturally Responsive Teaching by Dr. Jen Lindsay
All learners benefit from culturally responsive teaching practices, but what are they, how do we know we are effective in these practices so that all of our students thrive? Further, how can we better support one another in an on-going way so that we continue to create an equitable, culturally responsive learning environment in our school and classroom?
The aim of this session is two-fold:
1. Most practically, the session offers the opportunity to reflect and fine-tine how we "launch" the year, so that we begin with a culturally responsive lens and some concrete practices that bring this lens to life.
2. The session creates supported time and space to set individual and team CRT goals that align and are made visible through the Marzano framework so we can revisit throughout the year with this common set of dimensions CRT practices we implement.
Instructional Practices Alignment: Marzano 1.3, 1.4, 2.4, 3.2
Racial Equity training for all bus drivers & Classified Staff
August 29th, 1 to 3 pm with Nikum Pon
superintendent's welcome back address
August 30th
Presentation to all staff of the VISD & partner organizations
Board Policy 3212: Ensuring Educational and Racial Equity
Second reading
Adopted September 14, 2017; Revised October 26, 2017
Note: expand this text box to read the adopted policy
The Vashon Island School District is committed to the success of every student and to the District’s mission of ensuring each student, regardless of race or ethnicity, is equipped to engage, thrive and contribute in an ever-changing world. For the purposes of this policy, racial equity means a level playing field so every student has access to the same resources and opportunities for future success. If under performance is identified between students from different racial or ethnic groups, the district will seek to remove those disparities.
While complex societal and historical factors contribute to inequity within society, the District is committed to eliminating contributing factors within its control and to ensure race will not be a predictor of student achievement and success.
The superintendent shall establish a system to identify and remove barriers and reinforce best practices in the planning, development and evaluation of policies, services and programs. The superintendent will propose to the board for approval, differentially allocating resources to meet the needs of students who need additional supports and opportunities to succeed academically and develop procedures and practices that seek to eliminate barriers and ensure racial equity. These procedures and practices will seek to:
Raise the opportunity and achievement of all students while narrowing the gaps between the highest and lowest achieving students;
Promote representative diversity of access to and participation in academic courses, activities and school events,
Ensure adoption of culturally diverse instructional materials and lessons,
Ensure ongoing assessment of the effectiveness of racial equity initiatives through review of assessment data, surveys, focus groups, and other means.
Ensure all students, regardless of race, ethnicity, or class, graduate from the District prepared to succeed in a racially and culturally diverse local, national, and global community.
The superintendent will annually report to the school board regarding the implementation progress of this policy.
Vashon Island School District No. 402
racial equity and social justice conversation
September 19th
Michael Soltman & Stephanie Spencer with Andrea Branneke and Pam Orbach, Nikum Pon, Yvonne Monique Aviva
community film viewing & Discussion
September 24th
Vashon-Maury Beachcomber Life after Incarceration: Racial justice group hosting evening of discussion by Anneli Fogt, September 13, 2017
racial equity and social justice conference call
October 6th
Michael Soltman & Stephanie Spencer with Andrea Branneke and Pam Orbach, Nikum Pon, Yvonne Monique Aviva
racial equity planning meetings
October 18th & 26th
student voice: Riptide article
October 24th
¡La Chispa! regional leadership workshop
November
racial equity check in
November 17th
Michael, Stephanie, Yvonne, E5 & Maiah
Notes about our meeting from Michael Soltman to District & Community Equity Leaders:
"We have adopted standard based grading which makes for equitable grading practices.
The school board has adopted (and already revised!) a racial equity policy.
During our school kick off in-service days before students returned, we did a foundational training with all staff (ALL including bus drivers, maintenance folk, etc.) on creating a racial equity lens and started conversations on why we are talking about it (creating the "why").
Further, we had a deeper training with our PLC leaders.
We have also met a few times with Nikum and the Leadership team to start conversations around what things should like this year and have a good draft of a plan for your feedback on.
Maiah Marino has been hired as a contractor who has an extensive experience working in equity, restorative justice and has a relationship already with many of our families in the Latino community. She will be working with students and this winter will work on creating pathways to more parent voices and leadership in this work.
Yvonne Monique and I would like to meet with you in the next few weeks to talk more in depth about what we have come up with so far and hear your feedback and ideas.
Attached you will find the PSESD equity leadership calendar that we are hoping to send staff to and also the map of our work this year."
Latinx outreach services
December
Working in partnership with Vashon Youth & Family Services (VYFS), McMurray middle school staff worked to improve family access to school. The Hispanic and Latino outreach & human services led by Mariela Franco, focused efforts on bridging communication barriers between the middle school and our Spanish-speaking families.
connection to the district strategic plan
January & February
Racial equity work connected to the strategic plan adopted for the 2013-14 school year and beyond. Dr. Stephanie Spencer created and launched the "strategic plan in action" website during January. Jodi Burwell assisted with banner graphics the first week in February. John Stanton posted it to the home page of the district's website on February 9th.
initial charges of the building Racial Equity teams
January
Participate with equity leader groups from other buildings to conduct baseline equity evaluations in each building, and to create equity plans in buildings to include:
additional staff awareness and tools for reaching all students
propose activities to promote student voice among our students of color
promote activities to create more inclusive cultures in our schools
identify ideas for greater involvement of parents of color
Work with the superintendent and Maiah Merino to coordinate above
Participate in regional training to enhance racial equity leadership skills
Act as the district's commitment to hold the course going forward to ensure this work progresses across the district
Michael Soltman directed the building principals to establish building-based racial equity teams.
CEE Survey Custom racial equity questions developed
January
We formed custom questions specifically addressing racial equity issues for our annual Center for Educational Effectiveness. The custom questions were designed from several professionally developed equity surveys with the assistance of our consultant, Maiah Merino. The survey was available in English and Spanish, online and in print. Questions were designed for all 3 groups: students, parents and staff. We were looking for underlying patterns--things impacting school culture that staff may not have been aware of during the school day.
Student Questions
I have heard a student use a slur or derogatory put down.
I have been called names, insulted or verbally assaulted in my school because of my race/ethnicity.
I have been put down intellectually in my school because of my race/ethnicity.
I have been excluded from a social event or activity because of my race/ethnicity.
I have received insulting or anonymous phone calls, letters, notes or email because of my race/ethnicity.
I have been subjected to hostile stares because of my race/ethnicity.
I have been physically threatened or attacked because of my race/ethnicity.
I have been ignored after expressing my ideas or sharing my comments because of my race/ethnicity.
Students in my school would feel comfortable reporting harassment or racial abuse to school officials.
When students report harassment or racial abuse, school officials are quick to respond and resolve the concern.
dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Assembly at Chautauqua
Parents and Friends work with CES staff to jointly plan a more powerful MLK day assembly.
stay woke! Critical race theory in education
Introductory Seminar
January 25th
Carrie Power, middle school technology teacher and PLC leader attended.
Equity convening
Washington State School Directors' Association & Puget Sound Educational Service District
January 25th
New board members, Spring Hecht and Zabette Macomber attended.
district & Community Equity leaders' meetings
January 26th, March 23rd & May 25th
systems thinking in schools Institute
Developing Capacity for Thinking, Learning and Leading
January 29th & February 5th
Two-day training led by Dr. Marion Smith, Jr. and Dr. Nikum Pon. Superintendent Michael Soltman, members of the Chautauqua equity team (Rebecca Goertzel, Ashley Christophersen, Holly Boyajian) and consultant, Maiah Merino attended.
Consulting work with Maiah
February through June
Meet weekly with Michael and Stephanie.
Conduct student interviews in all 3 school buildings to gather qualitative data about the 10 custom questions included on the CEE survey.
Compile and share results with the building administration in a timely fashion, call out any items needing immediate action (such as harassment, inappropriate conduct).
Work in partnership with the building administration to launch equity team work and work through the building equity assessment (CES and McM--spring, VHS--next fall).
Consult with appropriate staff (principals and/or district administrators) about action steps.
Recommend resources as needed.
Participate in district equity leadership team meetings (every other month).
Meet regularly with district administration to report on progress and next steps; to share reflections/data, etc. (typically once a week or every other week)
The beginnings of building-based racial equity teams
February through June
Chautauqua's team led a book study on Culturally Responsive Teaching and the Brain. Administrators and community leaders participated in Racial Equity Training with Nikum Pon.
Team members: Rebecca Goertzel, Julie Kangas,
McMurray Middle School team formed and began meeting regularly.
Team members: Greg Allison, Winnie McCulloch, Stephanie Detwiler, Julie Jaffe, Carrie Power, Gay Roselle, Carrie Hatfield, Jenny Granum, Barb Jensen, Yvette Butler
Student voice
Listening Groups for Students of Color, grades 4 - 12
During the months of March, April and May, Maiah Merino sat with different groups of students of color. The race related questions from the CEE survey were used to guide the conversation during these sessions with students; however, the conversations were allowed to flow based on what the students wanted to discuss. Student feedback was summarized and shared with building administrators. Here's a snapshot of the engagement with our middle school students:
Things they would like from the school:
African-American teachers and staff
Latinx-American teachers and staff
Posters of their cultures around the school
A sign over the water fountain that says "All Are Welcome Here"
That students recognize what they are saying more often and who is around them
Many wanted to share their cultural heritages more like: music, foods, dances and special celebrations.
McMurray's middle school PLC lead group reviewed their CEE data along with the summary of Maiah's conversations with students. They developed a series of homeroom lessons/activities for the remainder of the year including lessons from Partners Against Hate. They asked Maiah to follow up with students after the first 5 weeks of lessons. Here are some excerpts from her notes:
Have things felt different or better?
All commented that it has not felt better, but instead “worse”; “nothing has changed”; “the amount of people making jokes has increased”; “the discussions are provoking the wrong thing and the opposite is happening”; “the same.”
What other suggestions do you have for next steps for next year?
“Having Kids go in front of the school who have been bullied to share their stories”; “More electives”; “Doing more about the name-calling. When a student is told over and over again, not to do something and they continue they shouldn’t just be told to apologize or not to say that word or act that way, their parents should be called and they should enforce more discipline. Because the kids that keep doing it don’t look at it like they really got in trouble.”; “Teachers don’t usually see it—during break, lunch and in hallways—they should move around more”; “this would be less of a problem, if we did nothing”; “tone down the amount of stuff, we have more jokes now, so, it’s a lose-lose situation”; “if we ignore it, people won’t know it’s wrong or, how it hurts your feelings”; “Club for diverse people”.
Are there any important dates we need to know about to add to our school calendar?
Dia de Los Muertos; MLK Day; Black History Month; Malcom X’s Birthday; Teacher Appreciation Week; Dia de Virgen de Guadalupe; Mexican Mother’s Day; Dia de Los Ninos.
Full notes from the student interviews in the Spring of 2018 (names have been redacted):
Superintendent search and interviews
March 24th through March 29th
Six male candidates were introduced to the community during the school board interviews. Of these six candidates, 4 were men of color. The candidates participated in public interviews with the school board. Interpretation services were provided for interested community members. Twelve questions were posed to the candidates, item 7 stated, "Our district and community have a strong commitment to equity and honoring diversity. How will you lead our district and community initiatives in support of increasing equity awareness in our community? How will you close the opportunity and achievement gaps?"
Three finalists were selected to move on to site visits with students and staff as well as public meetings: one general session and one specifically focused on the Latinx community with an interpreter. All public meetings were broadcast live. Of the 3 finalists, 2 were men of color. Dr. Slade McSheehy was hired to lead our district.
Baile Folklórico
Nidia Sahagún & Company
May 4th
From Ms. (McGilton) McCulloch, assistant principal, ". . .we will be hosting a local group, Ballet Folklorico to celebrate Cinco De Mayo in commemoration of Mexican culture and heritage here at McM."
spoken word & social justice club
June 1st
The club and evening activity were sponsored by the Parents & Friends for Racial Equity, Vashon Artists in Schools, Vashon Island School District, Harbor School Race Equity Committee.
The club launched at McMurray Middle School with mentors and then an evening performance at the Spoke Gallery.
Background email sent on 5/14 from Chelsie Irish, Parents & Friends for Racial Equity, to Greg Allison, McMurray Principal:
Subject: Spoken Word Social Justice Club
"Hi, Greg!
The Parents and Friends for Racial Equity Committee and the Harbor School Race Equity Committee is working with community leaders like Leah Mann, copied here, to organize a Spoken Word Social Justice Club (official name to be determined by students). The group will focus on our students of color and will meet once or twice before school gets out, a few times over the summer, and begin regular meetings once school resumes in the fall. Kids will have an opportunity to present their work at events taking place October 5th and 6th, with the group continuing (hopefully!) for years to come.
We been working on a kick off event happening June 1st where we will have professional facilitators meeting with students to begin the discussion around forming this group. Right now we are looking for a central space where we could meet with students right after school, at 2:30 PM. Could we use a classroom at McMurray for this meeting? We are hoping Maiah Merino, also copied here, will be able to participate in this meeting as well as she is such a wonderful ally already to a large group of the students of color in our district.
We are trying to get a press release out by Thursday this week to be able to start promoting the June 1st kickoff. If you have any questions about this request, please give me a call or shoot me an email at your convenience.
Fingers crossed!
Chelsie Irish"
student voice: Reps introduced to the school board
June 14th
Kevin Estrada Alamo, junior, selected to serve for the 2018-19 school year (his senior year) and Margot Armstrong, sophomore, selected to serve for her junior and senior years.
river of life reflection
June 19th
The learning leadership team (Danny, Alanah, Greg, Winnie, Rebecca, Julie, Kathryn, Michael and Stephanie) took time with consultant, Maiah Merino, to reflect on the racial equity work completed to date.
Email message from Maiah on 6/13/18:
"Hello Leaders!
I hope you are beginning to exhale as your year comes to a close.
I have attached two documents for you to look at. They are really for you to think about until we all meet on 6/19 at 2pm during your LLT meeting.
River of Life Exercise: Begin to think about and imagine the movements of your school and team's work around racial equity over the last year or two.
Racial Equity Services Feedback Form: This you can fill out beforehand or wait, again just an opportunity to see it. If you want to fill it out please send it back to myself and Stephanie.
If you have no brain space for any of this, I understand. I really wanted to give an opportunity to the internal processors, like myself, to at least see it and let themselves sift over it for a bit before we create and discuss together next Tuesday at 2pm.
If you have any questions before then, let me know.
Continue to be well,
Maiah"
IMG_0001.pdfMichael's "River of Life" reflection.
McMurray's Equity Team Journey 2018 compiled by Winnie and Greg
Courageous Conversation: beyond diversity
Pacific Educational Group, Inc.
June 27-28
Part I: Stephanie Spencer, Slade McSheehy, Maiah Merino, Julie Kangas, Greg Allison, Winne McGilton, Nicky Wilks
Part II: Amy Sassara, Kristen Dallum, Rebecca Goertzel
additional training with an equity focus
August 7-8, 2017, Sound Supports
Restorative Justice
August 28, 2017, Trauma Informed Instruction with David Lewis
Keynote Address: Relationships and Resiliency
Trauma Informed Teaching Practices (secondary)
Trauma Informed Teaching Practices (elementary)
August 29, 2017, Teaching & Learning Forum
Standards-Based Grading: Working Session
Student Discourse
Restorative Practices and Restorative Justice
Meeting the Needs of Foster and Adopted Students
Teaching Students to Ask Their Own Questions
October and November, 2017, Trauma Informed Instruction Follow up Sessions with Schools
March 22-24, 2018, Washington Association for Bilingual Education Annual Conference, Language, Literacy and Learning: 3Ls for ELs
Trauma Informed Instruction, David Lewis
School libraries
Diversifying collections & supporting culturally inclusive learning
Chautauqua Elementary Library, Kathleen Lawrence, PIE Grants, "Challenging Gender Limits with Picture Books" and "Great Books Featuring Diverse and Inclusive Families"
Welcoming Schools, Human Rights Campaign Foundation Book Lists
Diverse and Inclusive Families
McMurray Library, Julie Jaffe, PIE Grant, "Exploring Our Ever-Changing World: Reading to Cultivate Global Awareness, Citizenship, and Stewardship," $2000
This grant would fund fiction and nonfiction books that offer our students views of the vast range of human experience. Poet Emily Dickinson expresses the importance of books as windows to the world when she writes, “There is no frigate like a book to take us lands away.” These new books would connect with and expand the selection of books purchased last year for our Reading Without Walls focus.
As our district website states, we want our students to develop an “understanding of the connectedness of world cultures, what makes a good citizen, and the importance of each citizen’s contribution to the greater whole.” We want our students to develop a worldview that embraces cultural diversity and civic responsibility. The books this grant would purchase fully support this goal.
instructional program
Instructional Practices
Marzano Instructional Framework focus for the year (components): VISD Mission Document 2017-18
Instructional Materials
adopted new materials for the following programs/classes: Being a Reader, Making Meaning, Being a Writer by the Center for Collaborative Classroom (elementary English reading & writing); Washington Our Home, 2nd ed. by Gibbs Smith Education (4th grade Washington state history); supplemental instructional materials for middle school humanities
purchased novel sets for high school English offerings: Ancillary Sword by Ann Leckie, The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood, The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls, Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston, and Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand
Learning Support Programs
continued the English language program screening in June for eligible preschool students
dedicated staffing for highly capable enrichment pullout at the elementary school
reviewed proportionality data for all support programs