Cultural competence is critical and must be approached as a long-term component of professional development for all employees within the district. This includes understanding students’ basic language, behavior, and cultural beliefs (religion, faith, spiritual, etc.), differences that make groups unique, while helping them learn mainstream cultural competences so they can compete successfully in the Quad-Cities and throughout American society. This also includes exhibiting cultural competence through a learning environment that celebrates cultural and linguistic diversity. [1]
Engage district leaders in invitational cultural competency professional development in the 2022-2023 school year to prepare them to lead out the work in the 2023-2024 year.
Continue to offer cultural competency focused professional development opportunities to targeted groups in the 2022-2023 school years, such as:
optional book studies
building-based professional development
after school and online professional development opportunities
Rigor Week (summer) professional development opportunities
Create a professional development plan for the 2023-2024 school year which includes:
required cultural competency training for all staff district-wide
a menu of trainings for building leadership teams to choose for their building needs
Implement cultural competency professional development plan district-wide for the 2023-2024 school year.
Continue cultural competency-focused professional development opportunities in the 2024-2025 school year and beyond.
Embed essential cultuarly competency understandings into new employee onboarding process.