Advocacy

Equity means that each student is treated as an individual and the student is provided with an education that is meaningful, empowering, and prepares the student to thrive in our society. Curriculum and instruction in FCPS should be culturally responsive and should tap into the funds of knowledge of Latino(a) students. Each student should be provided with a pathway to graduation that leads to college and career readiness. 

We ask FCPS leadership to implement the following strategies:

• Curriculum and instruction needs to be accessible, relevant, differentiated, and rigorous. 

• Train educators (including central office) to write and implement culturally responsive curriculum/pedagogy. 

• Ensure that students have access to advanced academic courses.

• Inform and collaborate with students on options for after graduation (career and college readiness). 

• Work with organizations (such as Edu-Futuro) to support Latino(a) students and families.

• Expand the Chief Academic Office to include a workforce that is representative of the Latinx population.  

• Expand the Chief Equity Office (allocate money for more positions). There should be at least one specialist and one resource teacher for each office/region. 

• Increase the number of Two-Way Immersion programs to enhance academic achievement. 

• Collect and use qualitative and quantitative data to make informed decisions. 

The current FCPS workforce is not representative of the diversity of the students and community. Although Fairfax County is one of the most diverse divisions in the country (when it comes to students and members of the community), the diversity of Hispanic/Latino educators and leaders is not representative of that of our students and community. FCPS should implement more rigorous processes so that Hispanic/Latino employees are recruited, retained, and have a pipeline to advancement within the division. FCPS should pay teachers a livable wage, expand their recruitment resources, and build the capacity of non-Hispanic/Latino colleagues around cross-cultural communication and understanding. We must make FCPS more welcoming to the cultural diversity of Hispanic/Latino educators. 

We ask FCPS leadership to implement the following strategies:

• Pay a liveable wage to our educators.

• Clear and accessible information for professional development and advancement (what exists serves those that can access and not those who don’t know).

• Create adequate systems of support for Latinx teachers who are often taxed with going beyond their roles (interpreting, representing and advocating for the immigrant community).

• Mentoring within affinity (preparing for interviews, resume, etc.). 

• Ensure that there is a pipeline to leadership roles (schools and central offices).

• Train non-Hispanic/Latino personnel on cross-cultural differences and how to work with diverse colleagues. 

• The hiring process (i.e.interviews) needs to include culturally responsive questions and a panel that reflects the diversity of the division. 

• Each school/office needs to employ more than one Latinx personnel (instructional roles). Should match the diversity of students.

• Expand the Human Resources Office (allocate more money for more positions).

• Collect and use qualitative and quantitative data to make informed decisions. 

The current family engagement processes in FCPS are not culturally responsive to Latino(a) families. FCPS employs practices that favor families from dominant groups. For example, FCPS depends heavily on technology and this is a barrier for many families. Furthermore, FCPS does not have adequate structures in place to engage with families, the division practices communication and not true family engagement. FCPS should work on building the capacity of both educators and families, so that they can work as a team and contribute positively to the educational success of students. 

We ask FCPS leadership to implement the following strategies:

• Expand the Family and School Partnerships Office (allocate more funds and employ more full-time personnel). 

• Ensure that practices within the Office of Experience and Engagement and the Office of Communication and Community Relations are culturally responsive. These offices need a more diverse workforce and engage in practices that work for all families (and are differentiated). 

• Increase the number of Community Schools to provide wrap-around services to better serve student and family needs 

• Create and implement a new family engagement framework that puts the voices of families at the front, includes engagement (and not just communication), and includes structures where:

  1. The capacity of educators and families are increased. 

  2. Families feel welcomed in schools (languages and cultures are seen as assets).

  3. FCPS goes into the community to engage.

  4. Methods of communication are culturally responsive (videos, graphics, simple language, etc.). 

  5. Triangulated data collection methods are practiced (surveys, focus groups, conversations, etc.).

  6. School-to-home and home-to-school engagement.

  7. Includes a multi-tiered (differentiated) approach to family engagement. 

• Collect and use qualitative and quantitative data to make informed decisions.