Why THIS matters to our community:
- When stakeholders feel a sense of belonging then ALL members and students achieve, feel safe, and have a voice.
- When families are engaged, student achievement increases.
- When staff feel included and heard, staff engagement and retention, student achievement, and professional growth increase.
By the numbers:
Continuing the commitment to belonging, the Inclusive Excellence Guiding Coalition (made up of staff, parents, students, and community advocates) reflected on making exciting progress during the 2022-23 school year. The coalition wishes to thank all the district staff for focusing on diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB) this year. Some celebrations and highlights this year:
- More than 200 participants attended Native American Parent Advisory Committee events.
- There are four full-time parent/guardian liaisons and eleven Native American Cultural Liaisons supporting and creating strong relationships with families and schools.
- District-wide attendance (over 700 staff) at and commitment to DEIB professional development, which is almost unprecedented nationally!
- Approximately 1443 hours of Language Services have been provided as of 4/21/23. We are committed to providing interpretation and translation services so that multilingual families can actively participate.
- 90% of students in grades 6-12 reported “My teacher respects my cultural background” on the Fall 2023 Student Perception Survey.
- 89% of students in grades 3-5 reported “My teacher cares about me” on the Fall 2023 Student Perception Survey.
The BIG picture:
The Inclusive Excellence Guiding Coalition openly accepts a growth mindset! The group collaboratively set three growth priorities for the 2023-24 school year.
- Continue our district’s commitment to emphasize and grow on-going DEIB training for existing staff and provide DEIB onboarding for new staff.
- Increase diversity representation in existing committees, as well as increase parent engagement.
- Ensure equitable, effective, and consistent learning expectations for all students using the Multi-Tiered System of Support.
Expanded membership:
The coalition values the diversity of our community and is committed to having diverse representation to help reach our goals. For the 2023-24 school year we are recruiting a committed and passionate member from each of the school communities. If you or someone you know is interested please contact Vanessa Giddings, Executive Director of Student Support Services at [email protected]. Thank you!