Last June, I proposed to my colleagues the creation of a new Subcommittee for our School Committee: the Equity, Inclusion and Diversity Subcommittee.
This Subcommittee would seek to work with the Superintendent and the whole school community to assist in the equity performance of the district in all appropriate areas, such as curriculum, hiring, policy (including parent engagement) and professional development so that we can ensure a more balanced and equitable system that will lead us to greater outcomes for the district.
This Subcommittee would work with administrators to ensure that equity and inclusion should be in the forefront of all of our decisions from hiring to policy, budget and curriculum implementation.
As we know, we are a majority-minority school district, with over 65% of our students coming from diverse backgrounds. We know that the disparities in achievement on MCAS, and other student outcome measures are no accident. They are the result of choices made by policy makers, district offices, and in school buildings across the state.
We need to look at making different choices, and this Subcommittee would assist the superintendent to do just that.
And I’m proud that the creation of the Subcommittee was unanimously approved by my colleagues, and that Chairman Tom Abruzesse announced that I will chair the subcommittee, while Dana Murray and Samantha Lambert will serve as its members.
We need a forum where these topics are discussed proactively, positively, safely, and compassionately. It will be my honor to create precisely this kind of environment as we undertake this vital work.