A Framework for SystemiicEquiityTransformatiion A Framework for Systemc Equty Transformaton OVERVIEW OVERVIEW

PHASE ONE: DISTRICT EQUITY LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT Central to achieving educational equity is the development and strong support of school and district leaders. School Board members, district administrators, principals, and district departmental leadership teams must regularly engage in thoughtful exploration of institutionalized racism and its impact on student learning, and provide professional development opportunities that support school staff to develop the will, skill, knowledge, and capacity to achieve district-wide equity transformation. The components of District Equity Leadership Development include: Beyond Diversity The two-day Beyond Diversity seminar is the foundation (pre-requisite) for all equity leadership development phases described below. Beyond Diversity is designed to help leaders, educators, students, parents, and community understand the impact of race on student achievement and the role that racism plays in institutionalized academic achievement disparities. LEADS District Administrators and Principals LEADS seminars are focused on deepening understanding of institutionalized racism and its impact on student learning, and providing support for leading systemic equity transformation initiatives in the district and schools. During Phase I, district leaders (superintendent, district administrators, school principals, and district department leaders/coordinators) are introduced to the Equity Leadership curriculum and instructional framework through a series of six LEADS seminars. In Phase II and beyond, administrators meet in quarterly or biannual seminars to further deepen understanding and provide focused leadership support as the equity transformation process unfolds and is implemented system-wide. Phase I LEADS Seminar Themes are focused on system-wide application: 1. Critical Race Theory and Schooling 2. Advancing Equity Via Technology 3. Racial Equity Leadership, Systems Thinking, Professional Learning and School Culture 4. Culturally Relevant Schools and Classrooms 5. Empowering Families and Engaging Communities of Color 6. From Theory to Action: Designing and Implementing a Plan for Sustaining DistrictWide Equity Transformation DELT (District Executive Equity Leadership Team) The District Executive Equity Leadership Team (DELT) is the 8-12 member guiding coalition charged with leading and managing the dynamic process of system-wide transformational change. DELT members must have the positional authority and accountability to eliminate racial educational disparities in the district. The DELT team participates along with district administrators and principals in the LEADS training described above, and in supplemental training,
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coaching, and support focused on building the infrastructure to design, implement, accelerate, and sustain a strategic plan for system-wide racial equity transformation. Superintendent and School Board Workshops Quarterly School Board workshops and/or retreats are focused on leading and governing for systemic equity transformation. Workshop agendas are planned in collaboration with the Superintendent and Board Chair and focus around the themes of equity policy development and governance, strategic alignment, and systems accountability for eliminating racial achievement disparities. District Equity Assessment Protocol (DEAP) Designed to assess a districts current culture, climate, and readiness to engage in systemic equity transformation work, the DEAP process consists of on-site focus groups with administrators, faculty and staff, students, parents, and community members, and results in a comprehensive equity assessment, with recommendations for developing a Systemic Equity Transformation Framework. The need for and extent of the DEAP process is determined in consultation with the Superintendent. For many districts, components of the assessment process can be incorporated into on-going work with district administrators and principals, and with the District Equity Leadership Team (DELT).

PHASE TWO: SITE EQUITY LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT Central to achieving educational equity is the development of and strong support for school leaders who serve as the guiding coalition to ensure successful systemic equity transformation in their schools. The Equity Leadership Team (E-Team) at each school, consisting of 8-10 racial equity leaders (principal, teachers, and other staff), participates in significant professional learning focused on deepening their understanding of race and equity and preparing them to develop and then guide the implementation of the schools Equity Transformation Plan. E-Teams design and deliver professional learning activities with their school colleagues that shift the culture of the school toward embracing school-wide equity transformation. They practice Courageous Conversation; examine their schools policies, practices, programs, structures, climate and culture to identify barriers to equity and excellence; and lead systemic change efforts that result in high levels of achievement for all students. E-Team members complete the two-day Beyond Diversity foundational seminar, followed by a series of six one-day seminars. E-Team Seminar Themes are similar to the LEADS themes, with a specific focus on schoolbased application: 1. Critical Race Theory and Schooling 2. Advancing Equity Via Technology 3. Racial Equity Leadership, Systems Thinking, Professional Learning and School Culture 4. Culturally Relevant Schools and Classrooms 5. Empowering Families and Engaging Communities of Color

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6. From Theory to Action: Designing and Implementing a Plan for Sustaining School-Wide Equity Transformation Site Equity Team Development generally begins during the second year of implementation. PHASE THREE: CARE TEAM DEVELOPMENT The CARE (Collaborative Action Research for Equity) Team at each school is an off-shoot of the E-Team and typically consists of 4-6 racial equity teacher leaders who participate in professional learning and collaborative action research to discover, develop, document, deliver, and disseminate culturally responsive teaching and learning strategies. CARE Teams accelerate responsiveness to the learning needs of students who are historically in the lowestperforming student groups African American, Latino, American Indian, and Southeast Asian students by designing and delivering racial equity pedagogical practices that are explicitly and intentionally planned to improve engagement and achievement for underserved students of color. Working in collaboration with the principal and CARE coach, and with support from the E-Team, the CARE Team improves learning for underachieving students of color as a means to increase school-wide achievement. CARE Teams complete the two-day Beyond Diversity foundational seminar, followed by a series of six seminars. CARE Team Seminar Themes: 1. Craft Knowledge and The Motivational Framework 2. Racializing The Motivational Framework and Building Racial/Cultural Competency 3. Bridging Cultures, Examining Collectivism 4. A Framework for Educating African American Students 5. Data-driven Decision Making, Action Research, and Application: Culturally Relevant Pedagogy 6. Developing a Peer Coaching Model: Sharing Culturally Relevant Pedagogy CARE Team Development generally begins during the second or third year of implementation. PHASE FOUR: PASS TEAM DEVELOPMENT PASS (Partnership for Academically Successful Students) Teams serve to develop a leadership cadre of African American, Latino, American Indian, and Southeast Asian families and community members who will begin to learn with and develop along side the district and school leadership teams as partners in a multi-year, systemic equity transformation effort. PASS is an organic process that responds to expressed parent and community needs with respect to school and district racial equity transformation. PASS includes three key components:

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1. Parent Focus Groups Listening to Learn 2. District/School-wide PASS Team Development: Empowered Parent Leadership Seminar Series 3. Engaging Parents as Essential Partner-Leaders in Implementing the Districts/Schools Equity Transformation Plan PASS Team Development generally begins during the second or third year of implementation. PHASE FIVE: STUDENT LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT SOAR (Students Organized Against Racism) is the vehicle for student leadership development. The goal of SOAR is to empower students of color to take on the identity of leader in their schools and communities, and to see themselves as having no limits on who and what they can become. SOAR and the Student Leadership Institute (SLI) address the issues surrounding race, identity, and academic achievement through meaningful and ongoing conversations among students and the adults in their schools. The SLI develops major leadership events for students and provides resources for educators that enable them to continuously support students leadership development. SOAR includes three stages: 1. Student Focus Groups Gathering Student Voice 2. Student and Staff Racial Equity Leadership Seminar Series 3. Student Leadership Institute Student Leadership Development generally begins during the third or fourth year of implementation.

For further information, please contact: Diane Cowdery Chief Programming Officer PACIFIC EDUCATIONAL GROUP, INC. 612-871-6754 office 415-601-2382 cell diane@pacificeducationalgroup.com

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