The conversation around equity-based instruction and antiracist practices in school environments has been prominent in the education sphere for over two decades. We have been proud participants in the movement, in our individual professional careers, in our previous branding as The Equity Collaborative, and now as APC Leadership Collaborative (read about our branding change in another blog posted contemporaneously with this post). And we are ready for the next stage of this work.
The current anti-DEI pushback is historically predictable. Each time education advances the liberation of black and brown people there has been pushback. We admit that our reflexive reaction to the current political pushback is angry and defensive. But those negative reactions stand in the way of our commitment to finding a joyful, successful path forward towards public education.
U.S. history has many lessons of generational struggle that should teach us that communities have always had to adjust their language and strategy in the prolonged search for justice. We should use this moment of political turmoil to spur the type of radical changes that we all know education needs in order to fulfill its promise to every student – and most especially those from populations that are so frequently left behind.
Upon reflection on our own work in the equity space, we believe there is a better path, and one that we hope to set through the next stage of our own work. We begin with the admission that equity advocates have too often wagged our fingers at persistent, systemic problems without offering a realistic path forward. We need to shift from our work being mostly about problem diagnosis to it being mostly about actions that improve students’ lives.
To do so, we do not need to abandon the values of diversity, equity, and inclusion – even as the term DEI gets weaponized. After all, the actual work of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion means taking actions to ensure that every person (inclusion), no matter who they are (diversity), gets what they need (equity) to be successful. No matter the politics swirling around us, this will always be the mission of public schools.
Many education leaders are adapting their “equity” work to “belonging” work because leaders cannot ignore how students feel in school spaces. Students across this nation recount how they have experienced overt and covert racist practices and language, gender and gender identity bias; they are suspended and expelled for minor infractions, and they face the ubiquity of low expectations. We often partner with public school districts across the nation to perform Listening and Learning Assessments that gather and document the real-life experiences of students who experience oppression at the hands of school staff. Much of the data that we collect highlights the pervasiveness of racism, classism, and overall inequities that are ingrained in schools. Below are some of the responses we’ve collected over the years from students:
- “I didn’t feel safe here at all. In my classes, I would be the only person of color. I was so alone in those classes. So, when someone next to me would say the n-word, people think I’m annoying or opinionated but there is nothing done. I don’t want to be here. I don’t want to be walking through these halls.”
- “I’m Hispanic and people call me a border hopper for some reason. They call me illegal but I’m legal. It’s the same friend group that targets me. Some teachers defend me, but others can be right next to them and won’t say anything.”
- In middle school, there was something in a book about Arabs and the teacher said – All Arabs are terrorists. I raised my hand and said “I am Arab and I am not a terrorist.” She just stared at me.
While experiencing the voices of students like those above in juxtaposition to the political climate, it’s no wonder that school leaders are often unsure of what to do. Even with hundreds of books available on educational leadership, there is no “to do” list that can be effective without tools, coaching, and practice. This is especially true when leaders need to engage in difficult conversations about student and family identity, particularly when it comes to race. And, the conversation becomes even more challenging when you take into account other intersecting dimensions of identity, such as physical ability, socioeconomic status, language barriers, gender expression, and sexual orientation.
Educational leaders must take actions that have clear connections to intended impacts – sometimes these actions should have an impact on their entire school/district and sometimes actions should focus their impact on individuals or specific groups of students like those sharing their experiences above. Our effort is to support leaders to solve real problems with audacious actions, no matter what words are currently popular or unpopular. And to be clear, we believe this has always been and will always be the work of educational leaders.
With all of the challenges inherent in school leadership, we know that no one gets into education to hurt kids, nor to help the most advantaged students keep their advantage. For most educational leaders, the real issue is that they don’t know how to close the gap between their intentions of helping all kids and the actions it would require to create truly equitable conditions.
Our hope is to work with education leaders who want to develop and hone the skills necessary for leading schools that try to give every student, no matter who they are, what they need individually to succeed.
Together, we will go on a journey to do the work – learning and growing as an adult so that you can better support children to grow and learn as well.
If this approach appeals to you, we’d love to consider how we can collaborate. Please contact APC Leadership Collaborative to learn more.
This blog is a modified excerpt from our upcoming book on principal leadership. Learn more about the book here.