School Dist Culture and Equity Leadership - Fletcher

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SSchool District Culture and chool District Culture and Equity LeadershipEquity Leadership

Dr. Lou FletcherDr. Lou FletcherD49, Director of Culture D49, Director of Culture and Servicesand Services719-495-1105719-495-1105

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AgendaAgenda

1. Introduction: Assumptions2. “Inclusive Excellence” as mechanism

to increase Cultural Capacity 3. Key Concepts4. Key Principles5. What We Can Do

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I. Introduction: AssumptionsI. Introduction: Assumptions1. At its heart, inclusive excellence is about

creating equitable and just learning and working environments for all members of a community

2. Much of what we do in the name of equity and justice is inequitable and unjust

3. Being more authentically equitable and just requires attention to several core principles

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II. II. ““Inclusive ExcellenceInclusive Excellence”” as as mechanism to increase mechanism to increase

Cultural Capacity Cultural Capacity

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Approaches Approaches to Multicultural Educationto Multicultural Education

1. Celebrating Diversity2. Cultural Competence3. Human Relations4. Equity and Justice

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1. Celebrating Diversity1. Celebrating Diversity

Characterized by:• Surface-level cultural activities and

programming (fashion shows, food fairs)• Stereotypical minimalizations of “cultures”

(Taco Night)• Institutional resistance to addressing

diversity concerns in ways that don’t feel good to most privileged groups

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2. Cultural Competence2. Cultural Competence

Characterized by:• Focus on learning about cultures, often in ways

that minimize or essentialize cultures (“Native American culture”; “African American culture”)

• Focus exclusively on those in the “minority” while ignoring systemic power and privilege

• An expectation that those in disenfranchised groups will “teach” those in privileged groups about their “culture”

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3. Human Relations3. Human Relations

Characterized by:• Structured opportunities for community

members to come together across differences to hear each other’s experiences (Mix It Up Lunch; intergroup dialogue)

• Interpersonal focus rather than institutional focus

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4. Equity and Justice4. Equity and Justice

Characterized by:• Institutional commitment to creating an

anti-racist, anti-sexist, etc., campus through policy and practice

• Continual institutional assessment of the extent to which equity and justice or present

• Full cultural, social, political, and other access by all community members

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Part IIIPart III

Key ConceptsKey Concepts

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Concept 1: InclusiveConcept 1: Inclusive

• Physical inclusiveness is not the same as social or cultural inclusiveness

• An organization is only as inclusive as its most excluded member experiences it to be

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Concept 2: Equity v. EqualityConcept 2: Equity v. Equality

• The difference– Equality = Sameness– Equity = Fairness

• Building policy for equity rather than equality

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Concept 3: Implicit CultureConcept 3: Implicit Culture

• Sometimes called “hidden curriculum”

• What are the underlying values and hidden messages that form the culture of School District 49? Who benefits from these and who do they hurt?

* * *

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IV. Principles for an IV. Principles for an Equitable and Just School Equitable and Just School

DistrictDistrict

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PrinciplesPrinciples

• Authentic “inclusion” and equity cannot be achieved through cultural programming

• Resources committed to equity and diversity should not be used for “celebrating diversity,” but instead for eliminating inequities

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PrinciplesPrinciples• Inclusive excellence begins with creating

an equitable and just environment for all members of a community, which means we must be against all inequity and injustice– We must get beyond tolerance (compliance)– We must embrace respect and civility for all

• Cultural Capacity can only be increased from within a culture voluntarily

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• Exclusion is not just an interpersonal issue. It’s a systemic issue, often buried in “tradition” or “just the way things are”

• This is why it’s so important to understand the implicit culture and who it serves– Rookie Hazing– Segregation

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• Acting in support of inclusive excellence requires that we spend our “institutional likeability”

• Must be willing to upset people and the institution

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• Inclusion and equity require a comprehensive assessment and approach

• So we can’t simply add this or that program or class to an otherwise inequitable school district– First we must think about the curriculum, co-

curriculum, policies, hiring, leadership, and so on– Then we must take action to align the curriculum, co-

curriculum, policies, hiring, leadership, and so on to expand cultural capacity

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PrinciplesPrinciples• In order for a campus to move authentically

toward inclusive excellence and by extension expand cultural capacity, leadership must be actively and authentically involved

• It never works without a combination of shifts in (1) expectations, (2) policy, (3) accountability, all from leadership

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• Equity advocates in the school district must be empowered to fight the fight

• Too often, the biggest advocates are marginalized within a school district, but the real shift comes when those who support inequity are marginalized

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What I Can DoWhat I Can Do

Know and work to eliminate my own biases.

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Teach and learn about racism, poverty, gender based

discrimination, and other breaches of respect and

civility.

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Challenge each other. Strengthen “the choir.”

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Organize

• Build coalitions among your colleagues or school communities when you see change that needs to happen

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What I Can DoWhat I Can DoMove Beyond the Dialogue

• Dialogue helps us educate and organize ourselves, but dialogue, in and of itself, never creates change– If not now, when?– He who loves practice without theory is like the sailor who boards

ship without a rudder and compass and never knows where he may cast. -- Leonardo da Vinci

• Walk the Talk…Create the Capacity* * *

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Questions?Questions?Dr. Lou FletcherDr. Lou FletcherD49, Director of Culture and ServicesD49, Director of Culture and Services719-495-1105719-495-1105

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AcknowledgementAcknowledgementResource:Resource:Paul C. GorskiPaul C. [email protected]@edchange.orghttp://www.edchange.orghttp://www.edchange.org

School Dist Culture and Equity Leadership - Fletcher

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