Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee Minutes

June 9, 2022 

Location: VCSD Central Administration Offices

Chair: Zelig Kurland

In attendance: Julie Abdelsayed, Michael Baxter, Shonda Berry, Irene Buccieri, Russell Burns, Matthew Canino, Evelyn Funches, Zelig Kurland, Devin Lewis, Michelle Russell, Norelis Santiago, Marianne Serratore.

The meeting began at 6:05PM.

Renaming the Committee  

The Chair proposed renaming the committee to use vocabulary that is more aligned with common practice in the region and with the New York State Education Department. Options suggested were: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee; Inclusion and Equity Committee; Diversity, Belonging, Inclusion, and Equity Committee.

The consensus was that Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) is the most commonly-used name for similar committees. Some organizations include “accessibility” or “access,” but DEI is most commonly used and understood. It was suggested that a future discussion of what the terms diversity, equity, and inclusion mean to our community would be a valuable exercise. The committee voted to recommend the name change to the Board.

Reviewing the Status of Recommendations

Members of the committee reviewed a report on the status of recommendations made by the committee last June in order to have the opportunity to ask questions and recommend priorities moving forward.

A parent said it was surprising that the district does not have all teaching applicants conduct a sample lesson. The district does not require them and, for job applicants from other states, has reviewed video recorded demonstration lessons. The disadvantages and advantages of using video recordings were discussed.

Mr. Burns described the partnership that the district recently initiated with the Today’s Students, Tomorrow’s Teachers program and suggested that it would be beneficial for this committee to communicate with similar committees in the region to have opportunities to support and learn from each other.

A parent suggested that it would be good to include a “parking lot” of “wish list” items in status reports to create a stronger vision for the future. 

A student remarked that curriculum is important and that she is concerned that the high school is being overlooked because research into partnerships for secondary teacher training related to curriculum is still in the early stages. Parents noted the importance of teacher awareness when making shifts in curriculum: the curriculum should fit the students, not vice versa, and is a support for teachers, who must have the proper awareness to use it “artfully.” It’s important for teachers to share what has worked: in New York City, schools do 1-2 day retreats [conference days] for teachers to share work and receive training like Beyond Diversity.

A parent asked why the recommendation that all instructional applicants include a writing sample describing experiences in addressing racism and inclusion had not been implemented yet. There was discussion of the questions related to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) that are now used by the district during interviews, how colleges often ask for a written statement of teaching philosophy and a statement related to DEI, and that the specifics of writing sample questions should be worked out.

A parent suggested that we should be mindful that candidates are assessing the district when they apply for positions: if we do not require demonstration lessons or request writing samples it could reflect negatively on the district. Mr. Kurland stated that Dr. LeBlanc had told him that some districts provide students with the opportunity to evaluate candidates after demonstration lessons and then incorporate those ratings into the rubric used to evaluate candidates.

The committee also discussed a desire for more opportunities for parents to work with teachers. A parent noted that families are partners with the school and expressed a desire for openness so more trust can be built. A teacher inquired about different possibilities for providing opportunities for collaboration, such as equity team meetings and conference days. A parent noted that when it comes to planning heritage days, parents know their cultures and can work with schools.

Members of the committee who are not returning next year expressed their appreciation for the work the committee has done.

The meeting concluded at 7:28PM.

May 12, 2022 

Location: VCSD Central Administration Offices Chair: Zelig Kurland

Attendees:  Michael Baxter, Joseph Bond, G. Gerome, Jennifer Grimaldi, Zelig Kurland, Meghan Rilley, Michelle Russell, Marianne Serratore, Norelis Santiago, Fiorella Vega, John Xanthis. 

The meeting commenced at 6:08 P.M.

Welcome and District Updates 

The chair provided a synopsis of professional development related to the committee’s work that took place on the May 4 half conference day: at the elementary schools, workshops about responding to incidents of “racial stress” that incorporated videos of students’ suggestions; at the middle school and high school, a virtual workshop with Facing History and Ourselves about navigating “difficult” conversations; at the high school, a workshop with Dr. Gess LeBlanc about responding to students’ current needs in developmentally and culturally responsive ways.

The second administration of the Panorama student survey will begin on May 26. The annual application process for membership on this committee begins next week; members will be notified if their current terms expire this year.

2022-2023 Meetings

After a discussion of options for scheduling the committee’s meeting for next year, the committee voted unanimously to meet every other month. The chair solicited input on the agenda for this year’s final meeting. A parent suggested a focus on reflection through a review of the progress of the goals the committee has established:  What goals were not met? Why? Where is the work really needed?  

Response to Incidents of Bias

Committee members reviewed an excerpt from the Learning for Justice “Responding to Hate and Bias at School” guide in order to provide recommendations to the district for responding after bias incidents that impact the school community.

Students suggested ensuring that students feel and know that there are safe spaces in the school to have individualized support. 

Parents suggested that consequences for incidents should be clear. The excerpt’s suggestion to “State that discipline will be handled in a manner appropriate to the offense, based on school policy and local laws” was described as subjective. People want to see equity.  Blanket statements tend to protect the perpetrator and not the victim. Accountability is key. Denouncement of incidents has to be clear and strong and clear disciplinary consequences should be laid out. 

There was discussion of the need to provide support to victims and also to protect the safety of the accused [in cases where retaliation is threatened]. There was also discussion of the guidance in the Code of Conduct for consequences and of differences based on the severity of the issue.

A teacher noted that the recent training at the elementary schools was helpful in responding when incidents occur.  A parent suggested proactive strategies to prevent future occurrences and develop empathy through helping students see multiple perspectives. A teacher added that teachers are talking more after the training and communicating about situations. The awareness is powerful so far, and libraries are being built that are more inclusive. 

There was discussion of whether there should be a specific threshold at which administrators should notify the community about an incident, such as the number of students involved. A parent noted that social media can amplify events, but if people get the feeling that things are under control, they feel safer. 

The meeting concluded at 7:30PM.

March 10, 2022 

Location: VCSD Central Administration Offices

Chair: Zelig Kurland

Attendees:  Julie Abdelsayed, Shonda Berry, Michael

Baxter, Russell Burns, Jayme Ginda-Baxter, Jennifer Grimaldi, Zelig Kurland, Devin Lewis, Meghan Rilley, Tawanda Robinson, Philip Rodriguez, Michelle Russell, Marianne Serratore, Angela Terralavoro, Fiorella Vega. 

The meeting commenced at 6:06PM.

Student Focus Group Report: Students on the committee reported on the pilot focus group that took place on March 8: the Cultural Diversity Club invited students at the high school to join a session where different parts of the Code of Conduct were displayed at different stations. At each station, students could write comments on notecards. Students looked at disciplinary policies and the dress code.

Mr. Kurland added that students also looked at a portion of the Code of Conduct from another school district that described restorative practices. There was a discussion of restorative practices, how traditional disciplinary consequences do not always solve underlying issues, and how any change in approach would need to be understood and communicated. There was also discussion of the training that Student Assistance Counselors at Valley Central have received and how other Hudson Valley districts have implemented restorative approaches. A parent on the committee said that he works with students from a district with a peer court and can ask for their perspective on how well it is working.

Progress Measurement: Ms. Serratore solicited input from the committee on how to best measure the progress and success of the committee’s work. There was a discussion of the time needed for school culture to shift and the impact of the student narratives shared with teachers and staff in November. While it can be hard to measure training designed to raise awareness, the amount of exposure–the things that have been shared with staff–can be identified. Other suggestions for reporting included the number of books ordered, the number of classroom libraries, the number of training sessions offered on culturally responsive teaching and the cumulative hours of training that staff received. While intangible things are hard to measure, over time things like disciplinary referrals should start to look different, although the pandemic has skewed disciplinary data over the past couple years

There was discussion of how seemingly small things make a difference, such as students seeing different kinds of names of characters in books so they see themselves and don’t feel different. Another parent said that you will start to see things in lesson plans that weren’t there before. One of his children told him about lessons about Caribbean history that included different perspectives. Another parent said that her child sees different books now and that the Scholastic magazine is now more diverse. A teacher noted that for Read Across America the district now includes more authors to increase representation and that after the change teachers had positive feedback.

Work Sessions: the committee divided into two groups to provide feedback on interview questions related to diversity and inclusion that the district is using for employment interviews and also to continue work on a “frequently-asked questions” (FAQ) list regarding discipline and procedures for responding to allegations of bias, bullying or harassment. Attorneys will have to review the committee’s suggestions.

The group looking at interview questions said that questions should be designed to elicit desirable teacher characteristics and should not have obvious desired answers. Whenever possible, they recommended changing “culturally responsive” to inclusion/inclusive.

The frequently asked questions group discussed the possibility of workshops to review the Code of Conduct, seminars for parents, and they suggested including the following topics:

When searches are permissible and how they are conducted
The rights of the school when speaking with children about incidents
How Progressive Discipline works
Describing the difference between level 1, 2, and 3 disciplinary offenses
Explaining parents’ rights to know what happened to other children involved in situations (and limitations due to privacy laws) 
How discipline affects honor societies  
Is there such a thing as zero tolerance? Define zero tolerance. What things, such as the use of drugs or alcohol or fighting, are “non-negotiable”? 
What does an investigation mean? 
The meeting concluded at 7:30PM.

February 10, 2022 

Location: VCSD Central Administration Offices

Chair: Zelig Kurland

In attendance: Julie Abdelsayed, Linda Baker, Michael Baxter, Shonda Berry, Joseph Bond, Russell Burns, Matthew Canino, Evelyn Funches, Gehann-Karlee Gerome, Jayme Ginda-Baxter, Jennifer Grimaldi, Zelig Kurland, Devin Lewis, Tawanda Robinson, Michelle Russell, Norelis Santiago, Marianne Serratore, Fiorella Vega.

The meeting commenced at 6:07PM.

Welcome and Learning 

Members of the committee participated in an activity called “the race” and then discussed their experience, reviewing the framework for discussion from the January meeting (the Courageous Conversations agreements and mindset compass).

Curriculum Subcommittee Report
Ms. Serratore shared suggestions from the subcommittee, including that the district should ensure that teachers have a clear understanding of what culturally responsive instruction is and why it is important. Also, teachers should be asked what they need in order to be able to look critically at their English Language Arts and Social Studies curriculum. A parent suggested that there are a couple chapters in the book Culturally Responsive Teaching and the Brain that pinpoint a good definition of culturally responsive teaching.

Professional Development Subcommittee Report
Students on the committee were given an opportunity to share their experience at a recorded Q&A session facilitated by Mr. Kurland to develop professional development workshops planned for March 9 that use the voices of students to provide elementary teachers with developmentally-appropriate strategies for navigating situations and conversations in the classroom that involve culture, identity, bias, or stereotyping,  

The students reported that the conversation among students was valuable and that it was good for the session to have a clear purpose. Parents noted that it should be clear to teachers that support and coaching are available to them.

Staff Diversity Subcommittee Report

Mr. Canino provided an overview of the subcommittee’s efforts and discussions, including the efforts to market the district to applicants within a two-hour radius and the development of interview questions related to diversity, equity, and inclusion that will be incorporated into all aspects of hiring. There was discussion of composing interview committees to mitigate possible bias, including more people in the process of initially screening resumes, and being aware of the value of considering a wider variety of experiences and qualifications when screening applicants. There was also a discussion of parent involvement in the interview process and student rating of demonstration lessons given by prospective teachers.

Climate and Communication Subcommittee Report and Question

Ms. Berry shared a recommendation from the subcommittee that there be more student input on the Code of Conduct. She then posed the following question to the committee for feedback: what issues regarding the Code of Conduct and procedures for responding to allegations of bias, bullying, or harassment could be explained in a frequently-asked questions document?

Members of the committee formed breakout groups to brainstorm suggestions to be reviewed at a future meeting of the climate subcommittee. When the committee reconvened, the following ideas, questions, and suggestions were shared:

If you know the rules, you feel there is justice.
Dress code: hoods can make it difficult for teachers to tell if a child is in crisis. Being inside school is different than being out in the world. People need to consider each others’ safety.
If there is an incident of bias or harassment, the parent should know what the follow-up plan is so they can communicate with their child.
Are disciplinary referrals being analyzed? It’s important to look at the suspension rate and why students are suspended. That data can support honest conversations about how rules are being applied. 

The meeting concluded at 7:36PM.

January 13, 2021

Location: VCSD Central Administration Offices

Chair: Zelig Kurland

In attendance: Julie Abdelsayed, Linda Baker, Michael Baxter, Shonda Berry, Irene Buccieri, Russell Burns, Matthew Canino, Evelyn Funches, Gehann-Karlee Gerome, Jayme Ginda-Baxter, Zelig Kurland, Devin Lewis, Michelle Russell, Joanna Sandve, Marianne Serratore, John Xanthis.

The meeting began at 6:03PM.

Welcome and Learning 

The meeting began with an introduction to protocols for conducting productive conversations about race and equity from Glenn Singleton’s book Courageous Conversations on Race. First, a parent introduced the Four Agreements for conversations:

 

1. Stay engaged  (to actively listen to others)
2. Speak your truth (to create a space where people feel safe to share honestly)
3. Experience discomfort (to honor and respect discomfort, understanding that discomfort is sometimes necessary for growth)
4. Expect and accept non-closure (conversations can be long, deep, or about topics or ideas or differences in perspective that can’t be resolved in the moment)

The next element introduced was the Mindset Compass, which describes four “directions” from which different people can approach a conversation: moral (gut feelings about right and wrong), intellectual (seeking information and data), emotional, and relational (through actions and behaviors). The purpose of the compass is to recognize and be mindful of your own reactions. By staying centered you allow yourself to listen, support others, and stay engaged. 

Committee shared their typical “direction” when discussing challenging topics. This was followed by an activity in small groups in which participants read a narrative from a student about a time in elementary school when a Black History Month lesson made them feel uncomfortable and embarrassed as other students in the class stared at them. 

After reading the narrative, participants shared which direction on the compass (moral, intellectual, emotional, or relational) best described their reaction to the student’s experience.

Subcommittee and Co-Facilitator Setup Refinement 

The committee determined that subcommittees will meet as needed and that there does not need to be a formalized process for setting their agendas. At the conclusion of each monthly meeting, the subcommittees can determine the need and agenda based on the discussion that evening.

The Chair extended an invitation to parents to act as co-facilitators for meetings or to co-facilitate portions of meetings, such as the Welcome and Learning.

Professional Development and Curriculum Subcommittee Reports

On behalf of these subcommittees, which had met jointly, Mr. Kurland reported that:

• The discussion regarding instruction focused on professional development (teacher awareness, mindset, and motivation were deemed to be a prerequisite for curriculum work).
• The subcommittees also discussed professional development for administrators and support staff related to the goals of the Climate and Communication subcommittee–specifically, the need for staff to understand the impact of bias and to be comfortable communicating about it.
• An outcome of the meeting was to schedule a coordinating meeting for elementary equity team members to discuss next steps to leverage the student narratives workshops from November.

Staff Diversity Subcommittee Report

The subcommittee reported that they will next meet on February 1 to put a plan together for attending job fairs that will be starting in February.

Questions from the Climate and Communication Subcommittee
Ms. Berry shared these questions for the consideration of the full committee:

1. Is there a way for us to provide parents/families more clarity about the process by which schools handle discipline (i.e. what information can be shared, an explanation of “progressive” discipline, etc.)?
2. In general, do students and parents feel that school rules are fair? Is there information in the Panorama survey related to this question?
3. What improvements could be made to the Code of Conduct review process, such as increased representation on the existing review committees or student focus groups?

Response to Climate and Communication Questions 

In breakout groups, committee members reviewed data from the Panorama survey regarding perceptions of school rules. The results showed that student and family responses were more favorable in the elementary schools than at the secondary level. Also, many teachers felt that school rules were not “quite effective” or “extremely effective” in helping students to learn.

To address these concerns, the subcommittee set an agenda to discuss the creation of a “frequently asked questions” document about school rules and disciplinary procedures to improve communication about existing policies and to discuss the Code of Conduct review process. 

Mr. Kurland shared a sample work plan for use by subcommittees to turn recommendations into plans of action that identify steps that need to be taken and stakeholders (such as students, families, support staff, and teachers) that should be involved. Members noted that taking action will require support of staff within the school system because the work cannot possibly be done by the subcommittees alone.

The meeting concluded at 7:30PM.

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Dec. 9, 2021

Location: Virtual

Chair: Zelig Kurland, Co-facilitator: Shonda Berry

In attendance: Juliana Abdelsayed, Linda Baker, Jayme Baxter, Michael Baxter, Shonda Berry, Joseph Bond, Irene Buccieri, Russell Burns, Matthew Canino, Evelyn Funches, Geon Gerome, Jennifer Grimaldi, Zelig Kurland, Devin Lewis, William Miller, Tawanda Robinson, Michelle Russell, Joanna Sandve, Norelis Santiago, Marianne Serratore, Fiorella Vega.

The meeting commenced at 6:02PM.

Welcome and Reflecting on Current Guidelines

Several members of the committee shared their thoughts on the committee’s current guidelines for discussions by discussing a guideline that they find particularly important or that resonates.

Speak from your Own Experience (use “I” instead of “we,” they,” etc.); 
Make Room for Multiple Perspectives; 
Focus on Impact, Not Intentions; 
Step Up, Step Back; 
Stories Stay, Learning Goes; 
Design Next Steps Together; 
Keep Focused on Our Common Goal: we care deeply about youth and families; 
Put Relationships First; 
Share Gratitude

District Update

Ms. Serratore notified the committee that the school climate surveys conducted in November were complete and that administrators, support staff, and equity team members had received training on how to interpret and share data on Dec. 8. 

Recruitment, Hiring, and Retention

Assistant Superintendent for Human Resources William Miller provided an overview of the District’s current efforts to recruit, hire, and retain a more diverse staff. 

He said that the district currently subscribes to the Nemnet Minority Recruitment & Consulting Group. In October and November, ten administrators attended a Nemnet webinar about overcoming obstacles to recruitment. Nemnet also provides professional development for search committees about the interview process and school-specific evaluations of hiring practices.

Activities funded by a new line item for recruitment include attendance at job fairs at local colleges and within the tri-state/NYC area, informational flyers about the Valley Central school community, and materials and supplies for job fairs.

Mr. Miller also described efforts to create a “Today’s Students, Tomorrow’s Teachers” pipeline through electives and a Teachers in the Making club at the high school in order to support high school students in exploring teaching as a profession.

After Mr. Miller’s presentation, the committee formed four breakout groups for discussion and the full committee reconvened to share feedback. Feedback and questions from each group follow:

Group 1:

Districts need to provide support for months, even years to new hires. 
Some Districts are unwilling to pay for teachers with a proven track record, offering starting salaries instead.
In the community, some teachers of color go to Middletown or Newburgh because there is a perception, true or not, that those districts are more accepting and welcoming.
Hiring committees need professional development on things like body language and recognizing the assets of potential hires.
If the district wants to recruit from colleges, sending flyers is not sufficient. The District needs to “make the calls” to show interest and develop relationships.
Group 2:

What is the commitment to change? There is a need to approach diversity as enriching for everyone: faculty, administration, and students.
There needs to be consistency to the recruitment and selection process to remove barriers; professional development is foundational to ensuring equity.
A picture of this committee could show representation and belonging: people coming together, not just one group.
Colleges and universities are important, but it is important not to overlook the local community: there is a perception that the district is not inviting. How can we reach out to local talent?
Group 3:

How to change mindsets? Experience, book clubs, implicit bias training are needed. We need to understand what diversity is and how we show up as who we are.
When will professional development be secured? What are the school-specific evaluations that Nemnet offers?
Group 4: 

The impression that a recruiter makes is very important.
We should go outside the comfort zone of existing college relationships; there is an impression that schools are insular or hard to get in.
Subcommittee Setup Information

The chair presented guidelines for completing the organization of subcommittees prior to January’s meeting. 

Ensure that each subcommittees has a designated “scheduler.” 
Committee members may join more than one subcommittee; however, members may not assume a role (scheduler, facilitator, reporter, notetaker, or liaison) in more than one subcommittee.
Remember to consider the balance of stakeholders (parents, students, teachers, administrators) within the subcommittees when signing up.

Update to Parent/Community Co-Facilitator Role 

The chair presented findings from a subcommittee of parents regarding the parent/community co-chair role on the committee:

The parent/community co-chair role is more accurately described as co-facilitator.
A parent volunteer will serve as co-facilitator for the next three months. If there is more than one volunteer, parents will come to a consensus and contact the chair.
After three months (for the April meeting), the committee may re-evaluate the model and/or rotate to a new co-facilitator.

The meeting concluded at 7:27PM.

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November 18, 2021 Minutes

Location: VCSD Central Administration Offices

Co-Chairs: Shonda Berry, Zelig Kurland

The meeting began at 6:06PM.

In attendance: Julie Abdelsayed, Linda Baker, Irene Buccieri, Russell Burns, Zelig Kurland, Devin Lewis, Tawanda Robinson, Joanna Sandve, Norelis Santiago, Marianne Serratore, John Xanthis, Fiorella Vega.

Student Report

Students presented their thoughts about a recent virtual talk given by Dr. Darnisa Amante-Jackson entitled “The Culture of DEI: Creating and Manifesting Belonging,” which was presented by SUNY New Paltz as part of their Distinguished Speaker Series. 

The students described how Dr. Amante-Jackson had discussed the difference between allies, accomplices, and co-conspirators. Allies believe in a cause but don’t take action, accomplices believe in a cause and take action but avoid risks, and co-conspirators take action and are willing to risk their personal comfort. A student gave the example of a person who posts things on social media but who does not take any other actions as a “performative” ally. Another student remarked that many teachers are allies. The committee discussed the negative connotations of a term like “co-conspirator,” how “a bank heist” is the first thing that comes to mind. 

A student mentioned that Dr. Amante-Jackson played a game at the end of the talk where she would ask participants to report words that came to mind. For example, many participants typed “black male” in the chat after hearing the phrase “ex-con.” She noted that people don’t make the same association for Martha Stewart, even though she is an ex-con while Snoop Dogg, who co-hosts a show with her, is not. Dr. Amante-Jackson also did an association with “CEO” and described how she is not seen as one even though she runs a company. Students said it opened their eyes to the way we view things and people, and the assumptions that we make.

District Update

Mrs. Serratore and Mr. Kurland provided an update on the status of the recommendations made to the District last year by the Racial and Social Equity Committee in each of the four areas in which the committee was charged with making recommendations. 

Professional Development

Done: 

Keynote address at convocation by Dr. Gess LeBlanc.
Dr. LeBlanc is visiting all buildings this year to conduct focus groups with faculty/staff and students.
At the middle school, Dr. LeBlanc has led sessions about responding to students’ current needs through developmentally and culturally-responsive practices.
With the exception of the middle school, awareness training through reading and discussion of student narratives for the general population of faculty and staff will be complete after more sessions are offered to paraprofessionals on November 23. Workshops included basic “Speak up at School” tips from Learning for Justice for responding to bias and an explanation of the concept that racial literacy education can help mitigate the racial stress that both students and staff experience (Stevenson, 2014).
Spring 2021 listening circles with equity teams and administrators. Staff listened to students discuss their thoughts about student narratives and to their discussion about questions that had been submitted prior to the session.
In progress: scheduling of student narrative workshops for the middle school.

To do: 

Determining the need for and/or scope of structured training for building equity teams.
Train administrators to conduct feedback with an equity lens and to communicate about bias.
Ensure that all Administrators and support staff are trained to understand the impact of bias and microaggressions on students (requested by the Climate subcommittee). 
Training for responding to bias (beyond providing staff with the Learning for Justice “Speak up at School” tips). 
Identifying partners for additional training capacity (through the PNWBOCES Action Network, for example).

Curriculum

Done: 

3-hour workshops on inclusive curriculum in June 2021 for secondary ELA and social studies teachers to introduce concepts like culture, cultural responsiveness, identity, and agency. Co-facilitated by a Resource Specialist from the Hudson Valley Bilingual Education Network. The essential questions for the workshops: What does the curriculum tell students about themselves? What does the curriculum tell students about their possibilities in life?
Follow-up workshops in October 2021 with high school ELA and Social Studies using student narratives to illustrate concepts like student agency.  
Acquired more diverse literature for elementary classroom libraries. 
Provided elementary buildings with a tool for screening books.
In progress/to do: 

Develop tools and a process for auditing the K-12 ELA and Social Studies curriculum and provide additional training to support the use of such tools. 
Revise the textbook selection process.
Research a possible “Courageous Conversations” course (or pilot project) for the middle school.

School Climate, Code of Conduct, and Communication

Climate Assessment

Done: Selected Panorama Education, a nationally-known survey company used by other Hudson Valley districts, and developed surveys.

Done: Survey administration. Staff will be trained on interpretation and communication of data on December 8.

To do: use of data and evaluation of the survey’s effectiveness.

Code of Conduct/Disciplinary Procedures

Done: Code of Conduct was updated to include language regarding dress code. Students may now wear headscarves or head wraps. They are prohibited from wearing, depicting or possessing the Confederate flag or its likeness. Disorderly conduct has been revised to include the use of obscene, profane, derogatory, discriminatory, or harassing language based on race, color, creed, gender, sex, sexual orientation, disability, age, religion, religious practice, weight, ethnic group, national origin, or socio-economic status. 

To do: Work needs to be prioritized regarding recommendations for changes in communication, incident response protocols, follow-up after incidents, and a review of the code with an equity lens.

Staff Diversity (Recruitment, Hiring, and Retention) Subcommittee

Done: 

Joined PNW BOCES ACTION Network and contracted with Nemnet Minority Recruitment & Consulting Group.
Initial training by Nemnet for the Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources and several principals
Created a line item for recruitment and funded it with $15,000.

In progress: Developing a high school elective to recruit future teachers as well as looking to charter an after-school club for students interested in teaching. Attended an informational meeting with the high-school co-principals of Today’s Students, Tomorrow’s Teachers.  Their mission is “to recruit, mentor, and train culturally diverse and economically challenged students from high school through college and place them as effective teachers and committed leaders who strengthen schools and communities.”

To do: 

Develop a Valley Central informational flyer that indicates the work we are doing to ensure equity. 
Schedule job fairs at colleges that educate culturally and linguistically diverse students. 
Train administrators for mitigating bias in the interviewing process. 
Revise the composition of hiring committees.  
Screen interview questions for bias and ensure inclusion of questions that relate specifically to culturally-inclusive instruction. 

Subcommittee Organization

The next agenda item was to re-constitute the four subcommittees from the previous year to include new members and to have balanced membership among parents, students, school staff, and administrators. The subcommittees also began assigning roles to facilitate their work and developed an initial list of top priorities, goals, or questions to guide their meetings, which will take place prior to the January 13, 2022 committee meeting.

The meeting concluded at 7:32PM.

October 14, 2021 

Co-chairs: Shonda Berry and Zelig Kurland

The meeting commenced at 6:02PM.

Present: Zelig Kurland, Matthew Canino, Shonda Berry, Russell Burns, Linda Baker, Jennifer Grimaldi, Marianne Serratore, Julianna Abdelsayed-Roblero, Michael J. Baxter, John Xanthis, Norelis Santiago, Devin Lewis, Michelle Russell, Fiorella Vega, Joanna Sandve, Evelyn Figueroa-Funches, Irene Buccieri, Alexandra Ramirez, Jayme Ginda-Baxter

Welcome and Reminder of Discussion Guidelines

Ms. Berry began the meeting with a review of the guidelines for discussion:

Speak from your Own Experience (use “I” instead of “we,” they,” etc.)
Make Room for Multiple Perspectives
Focus on Impact, Not Intentions
Step Up, Step Back
Stories Stay, Learning Goes
Design Next Steps Together
Keep Focused on Our Common Goal: we care deeply about youth and families
Put Relationships First
Share Gratitude

District Equity Update

Mr. Kurland provided a report on the progress of projects that were discussed at the September meeting as well as on the recommendations made by the committee the previous year.

School Climate Surveys (Panorama):  In response to questions raised in September, Mr. Kurland reported that the family surveys will be completely anonymous. The student surveys will be confidential, meaning that the survey will use data from school records so that students do not need to enter their own demographic information, but that the district will not be able to view individual students’ responses. 

Mr. Kurland also summarized the outcome of the survey that stakeholders used to recommend topics and reported that the surveys are now scheduled to be open at the beginning of November for teachers and staff and then to open November 10 for students and families.

Mr. Kurland asked the students about the length of the surveys, whether 35 questions would be too long. One student thought 35 was acceptable but overall the students said that a shorter survey of maybe 20-25 questions would be better.

Mr. Kurland that teacher and staff surveys will also be conducted and that the results may be sorted by school.

Mr. Kurland said that Dr. Gess LeBlanc, a consultant who is working with the district, was unable to attend the meeting due to a personal emergency.  He said that Dr. LeBlanc, in addition to continuing his work with focus groups of students and staff, has been working with middle school staff regarding the needs of students after the disruption of education due to the pandemic. He said Dr. LeBlanc is modeling asset-based thinking by working with staff to build upon their strengths in order to respond to students’ needs in developmentally and culturally responsive ways.

Mr. Kurland then made reference to the recommendations for awareness training across the district and training related to the curriculum. He reported that during the half conference day in October, high school English and Social Studies teachers read student narratives and articles to discuss their implications for the curriculum. Other high school staff, as well as teachers at the elementary schools, are scheduled to experience the narratives during the conference day in November.

Mr. Kurland noted that the Yale RULER initiative the district is working on, which teaches both staff and students about awareness of emotions and emotional regulation, also supports the district’s racial and social equity work by creating a better environment for students. 

Parent/Community Co-Chair

The next agenda item was an opportunity for parents or community members to express their interest in the role of co-chair and to suggest procedures for selecting the co-chair and defining their role. 

Committee members asked for more information about the selection process and role of the co-chair? A parent committee member offered two options for a selection process based on her experience on how to choose co-chair or meeting facilitators. She described a ranked-choice nomination and voting process as well as a model for dividing responsibility and accountability among meeting coordinators and meeting leaders. She offered to share details about both models in writing.

Members stated the need to define the role and its expectations before asking people to consider the co-chair position and also asked about the time commitment for the position. 

Additional Questions from the Committee

A parent committee member asked if Valley Central has researched what equity teams in other districts are doing. Mr. Kurland and Mrs. Serratore reported that Valley Central has consulted with or researched the approaches taken by New Paltz, Highland, and Arlington schools. A parent suggested researching schools in Westchester County. 

A parent who joined the committee this year asked whether subcommittees have been formed and wanted to know about the recommendations that had been made to the Board of Education. Mrs. Serratore described the four subcommittees that had been formed and said that the recommendations made last year will be shared with new members. 

A parent asked which of the recommendations made to the Board are being acted upon. Mrs. Serratore said the recommendations were all manageable and are all being worked on and Mr. Bond said that the Board had received the recommendations.

Mr. Kurland suggested that the subcommittees will be re-established once the district receives survey results to help focus the work. A parent said that information about the committees and their chairs is important to share as soon as possible so they can be organized. The parent also said that, with the addition of new committee members for this year, subcommittees should meet as soon as possible to review the recommendations from last year, which can provide direction for the committee.

A parent on the committee inquired about the progress of the district’s efforts to recruit, hire, and retain a more diverse staff. Mrs. Serratore and Mr. Burns reported on the district’s current efforts, including the use of the Nemnet recruiting firm’s resources, a review of the interviewing process, and the inclusion of interview questions related to diversity and inclusion to screen candidates and to make it clear that supporting a diverse population is important to the district. Mr. Kurland stated that the District will have access to resources and opportunities to participate in job fairs through the PNWBOCES ACTION Collaborative Network.

A parent shared concerns about the degree of progress being made. He relayed an experience of one of his children in which a staff member mishandled a situation in which students had used language involving racist tropes and said that hiring a few more diverse faculty members will not be helpful if the district is still hiring people who do not have the skills or mindset to effectively handle those situations. He said that changing a few interview questions won’t be effective if the same people are asking them.

Feedback on District Communication

Mr. Kurland and Ms. Berry introduced the next topic on the agenda, to solicit feedback from committee members about how the District communicates information to parents and the public about incidents involving bias or inappropriate behavior. 

A parent noted that valuable resources are present in this room, that parents of the committee would be willing to help in response to the language used to respond to issues. 

A parent on the committee said that parents and community members need assurance that incidents will be handled correctly and won’t happen again. A parent said that she had expressed a concern about a staff member and then, after she had spoken to the school about her concerns, the same thing happened again with another one of her children. 

A parent expressed that there need to be mechanisms and opportunities for teachers and staff to learn and improve their practice.

Agenda Items Requested for Future Meetings

Definition of the co-chair role

Re-formation of subcommittees

Recruitment of teaching candidates

Next Meeting: November 18th 

September 8, 2021

Co-chairs: Shonda Berry and Zelig Kurland

The meeting commenced at 6:02PM.

Present: Zelig Kurland, Matthew Canino, Shonda Berry, Russel Burns, Linda Baker, Jennifer Grimaldi, Marianne Serratore, Julianna Abdelsayed-Roblero,  Gehann-Karlee Gerome, Michael J. Baxter, John Xanthis, Norelis Santiago, Devin Lewis, Michelle Russell, Fiorella Vega, Joanna Sandve, Evelyn Figueroa-Funches, Irene Buccieri, Alexandra Ramirez, Dee Kelly

Acknowledgments: Mr. Kurland thanks Russell Burns and Tamara Kirshner for making the courtyard available for the meeting, Matthew Canino for taking notes, the members of the committee for their time and commitment, the Superintendent and Assistant Superintendent for their leadership, and the students, administrators, and Board member who reviewed applications and chose this year’s new student, parent, and community members.  

Introductions: returning members to the committee had the opportunity to introduce themselves and share a notable recommendation made by the committee to the Board of Education last year or a notable idea or topic that had been discussed. New members had the opportunity to introduce themselves and to share their thoughts on student narratives that had been shared, as well as quotes from thinkers like James Baldwin and Glenn Singleton.

Discussion of Current Project: School Climate and Feedback Surveys

Committee members provided feedback on the development of school climate and feedback surveys planned for late October. Committee members reviewed a handout summarizing the survey topics available from Panorama Education for three separate stakeholder groups: students, families, and teachers/staff. 

Mr. Kurland said the District had elected to use the Panorama platform because the validity of the questions has been tested and researched, because it enables Valley Central to compare data with other schools for reference, and because of the sophistication of the reports that will be available.

Mr. Kurland explained that Panorama recommends the use of no more than 4-6 topics for surveys and solicited feedback, based on the handout, on the process for selecting topics (such as School Climate or Teacher-Student Relationships). Each topic typically has 4-8 questions.

A parent asked about the primary purpose of the survey and suggested that the first step is to clearly define the goals, which will help identify the baseline information that will identify needs for change. The parent also asked about the confidentiality of responses to the survey. Mr. Kurland shared that Panorama has a privacy policy that protects the data but that he will do more research on exactly what information can be seen by school districts that use their surveys. 

Parents also wondered how deeply the data will be looked at.

The committee discussed the process for selecting topics, specifically whether the committee should make a decision or if other stakeholders should be involved. A parent member of the committee noted that the timeline of the project, to launch the projects in late October, is very short. 

The parent also said that for projects like this the questions are who is accountable, who is responsible, who should be consulted, and who should be informed. In this framework, the committee is deciding who should be consulted.

A parent member of the committee expressed concern that the equity goals of the survey might be lost if too many other stakeholders were involved. 

The committee voted to keep the stakeholder group small. However, a parent noted that all of the students had voted for a larger stakeholder group and invited them to share their reasoning. During that discussion a teacher suggested that stakeholders could provide input on the survey topics through a Google Forms survey, which would simplify the process by not requiring the scheduling of virtual meetings or workshops. 

After this discussion, the committee agreed to recommend the use of a survey-based ranking procedure to invite stakeholders–such as staff on building equity teams, parent-teacher organizations, student leaders, and members of student clubs–to recommend topics for the surveys.

Discussion of Current Project: Awareness Training for School Staff

Mr. Kurland described options being considered for the first round of “awareness” training for staff being considered for the fall to provide staff with an opportunity to become more attuned to how students’ identities affect their experience in school. 

He said one option is to begin by sharing student narratives about their experiences, as had been done in 2020 with Administrators and the Board of Education. Another option would be to have staff participate in activities in which they could discuss their own experiences and identities, which would then be followed with the student narratives.

A parent recommended that staff hear student narratives, take training to learn about unconscious bias, and then hear student narratives again. Another parent suggested that the work always needs to begin with our own experience and that identity is a good place to start. 

Mr. Kurland said that he will be attending the September equity team meetings in each building in the District to get feedback from the teams about the approach that would be most effective.

Mr. Kurland referenced the note in the agenda that parents or community members who are interested in succeeding Ms. Berry in the role of co-chair should be prepared to declare their interest at the October meeting.

Next Meeting: October 14, 2021 at 6 P.M.

---

June 10, 2021

 

The meeting commenced at 6:03PM.

In attendance: Co-Chairs: Shonda Berry, Zelig Kurland; Juliana Abdelsayed-Roblero, Linda Baker, Thomas Balducci, Michael Baxter, Shonda Berry, Michele Catalfamo, Tanhena Pacheco Dunn, Jennifer Grimaldi, Zelig Kurland, Jared Lewis-Holliday, David Miller, Melanie Montenora, Marianne Serratore, John Xanthis.

Mr. Kurland welcomed the group and gave the District Status Report:

• The application process for new members to the committee who will begin serving September 2021 closed on June 10 at 5PM. Two-year membership terms for parents, community members, students, and non-Administrative staff are now staggered so that each year there will be a mix of new and returning members on the committee.

• VCSD is joining the Putnam Northern Westchester BOCES ACTION Collaborative Network. Joining the network provides the District with access to forums for sharing ideas and best practices with other districts in the region and also facilitates our access to professional development.

• For the upcoming Social Studies and English Language Arts inclusive curriculum workshops, the middle school sessions will be facilitated by Zelig Kurland and educational consultant Gess LeBlanc; the high school sessions will be facilitated by David Mumper from the HV-RBERN and Zelig Kurland. Mr. Kurland characterized the workshops as “ground level” and “foundational” sessions in which teachers will establish common understandings and vocabulary for concepts like identity, historical truth, and inclusive. 

Mr. Kurland opened the floor for questions:

• Ms. Serratore requested an outline of the training, which Mr. Kurland said is forthcoming.

• An elementary teacher described the recent training for screening texts for bias that had been attended by elementary-level teachers and cited the TED Talk “ The Danger of a Single Story” as a valuable resource. 

Mr. Kurland described the upcoming Building Equity Team meetings:

• For their June meetings, building equity teams are reflecting on both highlights and concerns/missed opportunities from this past year. Teams are also giving feedback and requesting feedback on how to better structure meetings and set goals next year.  
• He then asked, “What recommendations do members of this committee have regarding the operation of the teams; for example, how to best engage students and families?”

The following questions or ideas were presented:

• A high school teacher spoke about upcoming teacher workshops and suggested an email check-in for the building teams following the ELA and social studies workshops would be helpful since the building meetings would take place beforehand.
• A parent asked if parents would be attending equity team meetings. Mr. Kurland said that could be forthcoming.
• A middle school staff member said there should be increased communication between the district level committee and the building level committees. Mr. Kurland suggested that we email the minutes from the district meeting to the building committees upon meetings’ conclusions.
• Another staff member suggested putting out surveys to parents and students to determine how each building can make improvements. Mr. Kurland and Ms. Serratore said the Panorama Education school climate survey would be forthcoming in the fall, and emphasized the importance of curating surveys carefully and correctly.
• A parent talked about future outreach to families and wondered if and how progress reports would be made to the community. She asked if that was planned, and advocated that this was a critical step. Mr. Kurland said an end-of-year report was forthcoming.
• The Superintendent asked how some of the survey data would be gathered and Mr. Kurland spoke about several conduits and timeframes.
• An elementary teacher reiterated the importance of communicating building-level concerns at district-level meetings.

Mrs. Berry led the committee through a final review of the committee’s recommendations to the District for the following school year. As she presented the document, she gave committee members an opportunity to make line-item suggestions to the goals in the document. 

The committee held a vote on the recommendations: a motion was made by Ms. Berry, seconded by Ms. Baker. The vote passed unanimously.

Mrs. Berry opened a new discussion topic: how the District and its schools respond to bias incidents. 

• Among the committee’s draft recommendations is for the District to improve its capacity for responding to bias incidents for the coming school year. The purpose of this portion of the meeting is for members to discuss specific concerns and proposed solutions. 

• One potential resource for best practices is the Learning for Justice publication Responding to Hate and Bias at School.

• Ms. Serratore spoke about the upcoming “Check and Connect” program, which is meant to augment student communication, which she advocated as a possible aid in responding to bias incidents. She then asked for student suggestions.
• A student emphasized the importance of accountability for students to not only be disciplined but to be educated after each incident. He also suggested teachers should be encouraged to engage in these discussions about social and racial equity.
• An elementary teacher discussed the possibility of augmenting communication and contact with students even further with mediation practices.
• Mr. Xanthis addressed the student’s recommendation for educating students while disciplining them, and spoke to a district program that does just that, giving two examples wherein learning, working, and counselling opportunities were given to the student as a supplement to punitive measures.
• A parent also addressed the need for mediation and detailed it further. 
• A staff member asked if there is anything in place to follow up incidents with victims as well as perpetrators of bias incidents.
• Ms. Serratore discussed the advent of “safe school ambassadors” at the middle school, wherein trained student committees assist in mediating incidents.
• A parent, who is a teacher in another district, spoke to the tendencies among students to come to him after such incidents and tell him that justice was not served. He suggested that although the victimized students cannot be told exactly what disciplinary measures were taken, there should be a way for students to understand that justice has been served. Several members responded that follow up is indeed important despite the obstacles.
• A student shared an incident in middle school wherein he experienced racism directly and said he would have loved some follow up on this incident, even if it’s just to hear that it won’t continue and that the staff cares about him. He said the punishment knowledge isn’t expected, simply whether the lesson was learned by the perpetrator.

Mr. Kurland gave a thank you to all members, Mrs. Berry opened the floor for final thoughts, and Mr. Xanthis thanked the group for everyone’s time and devotion.

The meeting concluded at 7:20PM.

May 13, 2021— Virtual Meeting

The meeting commenced at 6:00PM.

Present:  Co-chairs: Shonda Berry and Zelig Kurland; Julianna Abdelsayed-Roblero, Linda Baker, Shonda Berry, Joseph Bond, Russell Burns, Jennifer Grimaldi, Zelig Kurland, Jared Lewis-Holliday, David Miller, Melanie Montenora, Marianne Serratore, John Xanthis.

Mrs. Berry welcomed the group and gave a brief reminder of our discussion guidelines:

• Speak from your Own Experience (use “I” instead of “we,” they,” etc.)
• Make Room for Multiple Perspectives
• Focus on Impact, Not Intentions
• Step Up, Step Back
• Stories Stay, Learning Goes
• Design Next Steps Together
• Keep Focused on Our Common Goal: we care deeply about youth and families
• Put Relationships First
• Share Gratitude

Status Report from the District 

Mr. Kurland gave a status report on the group’s progress which included:

• Staff from K-8 buildings are attending a three-day workshop entitled “Reframing Text-Based Lessons with an Equity Lens” during which participants learn how to audit texts/materials for bias and will receive and use a rubric for evaluating how diversity is represented in their classrooms and schools. Participants will also develop, use, and debrief on their use of lessons designed to be socially just using any available resource. The workshop is being facilitated by Maria Campanario of Benchmark Education and offered through Putnam Northern Westchester BOCES. 
• On May 20, VCSD administrators will attend a listening circle hosted by the Cultural Diversity Club to answer questions about equity that administrators have submitted in advance. There will be separate sessions for secondary-level administrators and elementary administrators.
• Inclusive curriculum training developed in collaboration with the Hudson Valley Region Bilingual Education Resource Network (HV-RBERN) and Gess LeBlanc is scheduled for secondary ELA, Social Studies, and ENL teachers next month.

Mrs. Serratore offered a summary of surveys offered by Panorama Education and announced that the District will be using those surveys next school year.

Succession Plan for the Committee

Mr. Kurland opened the floor for discussion regarding members’ continued participation. All members terms expire at the end of this year; the motion is to choose a method by which to extend the terms of half of the current members by a year and then to offer two-year terms to the next members so that terms will be staggered in the future:

• It was suggested that attendance should matter for continued participation.
• Another member suggested reaching out to see if others were interested in participating.
• Another member asked if there would be additional student positions.
• Another member asked how the process for selection would work. Options were discussed.
• Another member asked if there was a way of eliminating members who are not responding to the survey that had been sent out for members to declare whether they were interested in extending their term through next year.
• It was determined that the application process for new members should be completed by the end of the school year so the committee is ready to work in September.

Mr. Kurland made a motion to get this succession plan completed by the end of the school year and to incorporate the suggestions that survey responses and attendance should be taken into consideration before randomly determining which members should be offered a term extension. Mrs. Berry seconded the motion. The vote was unanimous to proceed with the plan to establish staggered membership terms and complete the process before the end of the school year.

Subcommittee Reports

During this portion of the meeting, members had the opportunity to comment on the recommendations for action suggested by each subcommittee so that they can be finalized and presented to the District at the conclusion of the next meeting. 

Professional Development Subcommittee & School Climate Subcommittees 

In addressing the work of these subcommittees, there was additional discussion about the Panorama Education surveys, which appear to be designed to address district culture as it pertains to racial and social equity.

• Code of conduct language was discussed as it pertains to dress code.
• Mr. Kurland asked if it was a good plan to recommend language that gives the administration a better mechanism for addressing speech or dress that intimidates or expresses hostility towards others.
• A student member strongly endorsed the idea that this should be pursued. 
• Mr. Kurland continued to suggest various methods to address bias incidents and training with regards to microaggressions.
• Restorative justice was also brought up as a method to pursue.
• It was emphasized that support staff should be trained in addition to teachers.

 

Curriculum Subcommittee 

• There was discussion about how to implement coming audits of curriculum, and then how to determine processes of revisions.
• It was suggested to train staff members one year, so that content may be taught effectively by the following year.

Staff Diversity Subcommittee

Mr. Burns thanked several members individually for their contributions to the work of the subcommittee and posited that the district needs to augment its efforts to recruit new teachers that can best relate to our students and simultaneously train current teachers to address our students’ needs.

• The goal is for teachers to better understand their students and relate to them in every respect while increasing the applicant pool to facilitate increased staff diversity.
• He discussed current methods of staff recruitment and expressed the desire to find additional methods to increase staff diversity.
• He also discussed how to create additional pathways for students to increase leadership roles within the structure of the committee.
• A member asked how perhaps the connections to where student teachers are coming from might affect the way in which we can recruit a more diverse staff.
• The leader of the subcommittee affirmed that this was a good idea, and added that the language in job postings that are meant to attract candidates can broaden our pool of candidates.

Discussion of Next Steps

Mr. Kurland opened the floor for discussion regarding recommendations to the district and finalizing them at the June meeting.

• Mrs. Serratore expressed confidence in our ability to move forward, even if some mid-term goals become long-term goals in order to be implemented properly.
• A student member mentioned that he has some recommendations for the curriculum subcommittee. He brought up the topic of Black History Month, and he expressed the possibility of a Black History elective. He said he was “on the fence” about it, but thought it was a worthy experiment. He expressed concern that there are other races and ethnicities that should have light shed on them.
• A school staff member suggested that maybe the title of the class can be called “World Cultures” and expanded to be more inclusive.
• A parent discussed the possibility of expanding the course or rather framing the course to be about innovators of diverse cultures.

Mr. Kurland discussed the focus of our next meeting: response to bias incidents. He posed the question to frame the next meeting: What can we do to improve our response to bias incidents?

The meeting concluded at 7:08PM.

April 8, 2021- Virtual Meeting

Co-chairs: Shonda Berry and Zelig Kurland
The meeting commenced at 6:02PM.

Present: Zelig Kurland, Matthew Canino, Shonda Berry, Russel Burns, Linda Baker, Tanhena Pacheco Dunn, Jennifer Grimaldi, Marianne Serratore, Thomas Balducci, David Miller, Julianna Abdelsayed-Roblero, Michele Catalfamo, Gehann-Karlee Gerome, Michael J. Baxter, John Xanthis, Iris Rose, Norelis Santiago.

Welcome and Reminder of Discussion Guidelines

Speak from your Own Experience (use “I” instead of “we,” they,” etc.)
Make Room for Multiple Perspectives
Focus on Impact, Not Intentions
Step Up, Step Back
Stories Stay, Learning Goes
Design Next Steps Together
Keep Focused on Our Common Goal: we care deeply about youth and families
Put Relationships First
Share Gratitude

Status Report on Building Equity Teams

Last month school staff from each building’s equity teams listened to high school students read and discuss narratives about student’s experiences in school. Students also responded to questions that staff had submitted in advance. A group of students is working to organize future “listening circles” or discussions; so far their first priority is to meet with school administrators.

Subcommittee Reports

Each subcommittee reports on their initial discussions about top concerns and goals. (The purpose of this portion of the meeting was for each subcommittee to receive feedback from the larger group before prioritizing and developing a timeline for their goals.) 

Professional Development Subcommittee

District status update: numerous staff members from the equity teams have stressed the importance, value, and power of student voices for raising awareness among staff members. 

After the subcommittee met, Marianne Serratore and Zelig Kurland met with Dr. Gess LeBlanc, educational consultant, and David Mumper, a research specialist with the Hudson Valley Regional Bilingual Education Resource Network (HV-RBERN), to discuss the District’s capacity for professional development. 

Their recommendation is that the District not engage in a comprehensive contract with a training provider for next school year: the first step is to raise awareness, which can be best done through the expertise of existing partners and trainings that have been developed within the District that give voice to our students. The District will simultaneously seek additional equity-related training through BOCES and other providers, such as workshops related to curriculum.

Top concerns of the subcommittee: 

Determining in-house capacity
Developing/learning common terminology 
Choosing the right type of training and making them differentiated (appropriate for the variations in awareness, knowledge, and skill among different participants).

Short-term goals of the subcommittee: 

Choose a keynote speaker for convocation (Dr. LeBlanc)
Choose training for building equity teams in June
Choose training (and resources) all staff will have for the 2021-22 school year.
Develop a training outline for our different groups.
Look for free resources that will be shared via mylearningplan (the system used by staff to sign up for professional development).
Write a recommendation for procedure to follow when there is a racial issue in the classroom for the climate committee
Medium/long term goals of the subcommittee: 

Train 50% of staff by the end of the first semester of the 2021-22 school year
Train the other 50% by the end of 2021-22 school year
Create a commitment to yearly racial equity training
Create a succession of training
What additional information is needed? Knowledge of common language/vocabulary to use.

Curriculum Subcommittee

Top concerns included that students should be included all the time, that inclusion should be part of “who we are,” and that student voices should be at the forefront. 

Top goals reported by the subcommittee include to:

Determine the level of staff awareness by the end of the 2020-2021 school year
Create an action plan for building awareness by the end of the 2020-2021 school year to be implemented starting in September of 2021
Send a small group to training on curriculum evaluation over the summer
Research anti-racism/equity curriculum in existence, such as the “Courageous Conversations” curriculum at Hastings-on-Hudson schools.

The next steps for the subcommittee are to:

Develop a plan for determining awareness
Review curriculum scorecards developed by the NYU Metro Center
Review and share the state’s Culturally Responsive-Sustaining Education Framework
Discussion: the need to begin with staff awareness was discussed and that staff must be included in the process because “people will make successful what they help to create.”

A parent noted that while many feel a sense of urgency to make changes to the curriculum, slowing down to be intentional is a form of action. There are different phases to awareness: introduction to a concept, curiosity about the new concept, and developing a vocabulary to describe the subject—a vocabulary that helps us see others’ perspectives.

A teacher noted the recent diversification of the characters in the books used in the elementary schools; a parent noted that how characters are presented by teachers is also very important. For example, that teachers do not speak about characters in a way that makes them seem different or diminished by saying things like “Now here’s a story about a little Chinese boy.”

A teacher on the committee shared that schools in Arlington, Virginia use the Anti-Defamation League’s “No Place for Hate” curriculum and also recommended looking at “The Power of We” materials from PBS Kids.

A student noted that teachers should know that students believe what teachers say and hear what they say as literally being true. If an adult says “eat your food because there are people starving in Africa,” students may think that everyone in Africa is starving and that hunger does not exist in their own community.

Staff Diversity Subcommittee (Recruitment, Hiring, and Retention)

Top concerns/questions:

What are percentages of student diversity?
What is the hiring process at VC? 
What are the staff ratios at VC for teachers, paraprofessionals, and administrators?
What is the education level of teaching staff?
What accountability measures will there be to assure newly-established practices are taking place? 
Top goals (short, medium, and/or long term):

Broaden our applicant pool to increase diversity in staff
Increase hiring of diverse staff each year.
Within 10 years increase the percentage of diverse staff to 20%
Information needed to proceed:

Recruitment resources, job fair opportunities (OLAS, Nemnet)
How do we represent our ads on OLAS or elsewhere? 
Next steps:

Collect data on staff ratios
Research job fair opportunities (parents and community members involved in attending fairs and promoting the school district)
Look at current hiring process and evaluate effectiveness
Team up with colleges with racially-diverse students
Possibly send ads to graduate programs
Discussion: a parent with experience in human resources made the following suggestions: 1) send advertisements to graduate programs in teaching in addition to OLAS, which is the default platform for posting educational jobs in the region. 2) Add questions about diversity to applications to signal that it is a priority. 3) Look at how ads are written.

The current nationwide lack of diversity in teachers was noted as an obstacle to current students pursuing a career in education: “if you can’t see yourself, you can’t imagine yourself there.”

School Climate Subcommittee 

Top concerns:

What is it that we want to see in the Code of Conduct? 
What are the disciplinary procedures? (the course of action)
How is discipline determined (Board of Education policy)
What do we do with repeat offenders? 
Who are the DASA coordinators and where are they located?
What role does advisory play in addressing school climate? 
Top goals (short, medium, and/or long term):

An advisory program is a valuable resource for students.
Communicate the student support process to students and the community.
Communicate where students should go when they need to talk. 
Communicate standard of behavior and consequences for misbehavior. 
Student input is needed throughout this process.  
What information needed to proceed?

What climate surveys are available for schools? 
How does the current BOE policy address these issues?
STUDENT INPUT!!!
Next steps: 

Review the Equity and Inclusion Survey from Panorama Education
Familiarize the group with the state’s Culturally Responsive-Sustaining Education Framework

Discussion of Next Steps

Preparation for May meeting: draft plan from subcommittees that includes a timeline for short (by the start of next school year), medium (by the end of next school year), and long-term goals.
What will student/parent/community involvement in the process look like next year? There is an annual meeting to review the Code of Conduct; the subcommittee should potentially look at the process that takes place and how people are invited to be part of that meeting.
A member of the committee asked about the ultimate intention of this district committee.  Are our recommendations going to be implemented or considered? The Superintendent and Assistant Superintendent responded that we are not here to waste people’s time and will absolutely and sincerely take the recommendations into account when moving forward. 
Using a template provided by the equity coordinator, each subcommittee will develop an action plan by May 7 that specifies short term (before next school year), medium term (during next school year), and long-term goals. This will give the committee at-large time to review each subcommittee’s plan before the next meeting.  
The equity coordinator will create a shared drive for committee members to use to share resources. 
The meeting concluded at 7:25 PM.

Next Meeting: May 13, 2021 at 6 P.M.

March 11, 2021- Virtual Meeting

Co-Chairs: Shonda Berry, Zelig Kurland

In attendance: Russell Burns, Zelig Kurland, Matthew Canino, John Ramos, Shonda Berry, Matthew Perez-Fernandez, Jared Lewis-Holliday, Michael Baxter, David Miller, Linda Baker, Gehann-Karlee Gerome, Juliana Abdelsayed-Roblero, Marianne Serratore, Melanie Montenora, Gess LeBlanc, Michele Catalfamo, Iris Rose, Courtney Grogan, Tanhena Dunn, Jennifer Grimaldi

The meeting began at 6:04P.M.

Welcome

Mrs. Berry briefly reviewed the committee’s discussion guidelines: 

• Speak from your Own Experience (use “I” instead of “we,” they,” etc.)
• Make Room for Multiple Perspectives
• Focus on Impact, Not Intentions
• Step Up, Step Back
• Stories Stay, Learning Goes
• Design Next Steps Together
• Keep Focused on Our Common Goal: we care deeply about youth and families
• Put Relationships First
• Share Gratitude

Dr. Gess LeBlanc

Mrs. Berry then introduced Dr. Gess LeBlanc, an educational consultant for the District and a Professor of Psychology at Hunter College. Dr. LeBlanc summarized what he has been doing for the district, including providing support to:

• Administration
• the Board of Education
• Middle School 
• High School
• The District’s focus on diversity and culturally-responsive teaching.

Dr. LeBlanc has conducted student, teacher, and parent focus groups to learn how students are best supported in order to inform professional development. He has identified that there is a need to address issues as it pertains to equity. Having this committee and the subcommittees is a critical step.

One key area is the diversity of school staff and to examine hiring practice to identify where bias may be creeping into our system and how to prevent it. The Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction asked what he might do to assist teachers with regard to culturally-responsive teaching and he referred to three phrases in this work: Awareness, Knowledge, Skills. 

• We are still in the awareness phase.
• Many try to jump to skills, but he cautions against this.
• It’s critical we work on awareness to make it authentic.
• The work should be driven by student’s needs and guidance provided by New York State in its Culturally Responsive-Sustaining Education Framework. 
• He wants to build on what teachers are already doing, not start over.

With regard to curriculum, Dr. LeBlanc referred to scorecards from NYU Steinhardt’s Metropolitan Center for Research on Equity and the Transformation of Schools (“Metro Center”) for evaluating English Language Arts (ELA) and Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics (STEAM) curriculum. A student asked how these “scorecards” might apply to math and Dr. LeBlanc discussed how exposure to mathematicians from different cultural backgrounds is important, as well as how math is used in different cultures. This is something that is often overlooked or not considered.

Another student stated that the way in which Black history is rolled out—designated only to a single month, using only a handful of figures like MLK and Harriet Tubman—should be improved. He asked how we can improve how we approach Black history in school.

Dr. LeBlanc replied that we must do it in a much more inclusive way overall. Part of this will mean that adults need to move outside of their comfort zone. We should avoid “Heroes and Holidays” by focusing on inclusion throughout the school year. Encyclopedia Africana by Henry Louis Gates is a recommended text for ways to avoid covering the same figures whose stories have been covered many times over for most students.

Status Report from District 

Zelig Kurland will work full-time next year as Equity Coach and Coordinator next school year to support the committee’s work and assist with professional development. 

Across the District, there are 58 staff members total on the equity teams that have been created in each school building. 

• The teams met in January for an initial discussion of the District’s current strengths, challenges, and needs related to equity.
• In February, the teams discussed a chart defining racial literacy from Howard Stevenson’s Promoting Racial Literacy in Schools: Differences That Make a Difference and passages from the text “Avoiding Equity Detours.” Then, the teams viewed student responses to the same texts from students in high school’s Race, Identity, and Justice elective course.
• This month the teams will attend a Google Meet in which they listen to students discuss narratives that students had written about their experiences in school.
• Administrators from each building recently attended the “Achieving Racial Consciousness” training with Dr. Darren Graves of Simmons University, which was offered by the NYS Eastern Region Technical Assistance Center for Community Schools (ETAC).
• John Xanthis and Marianne Serratore attend the weekly Countywide Racial Equity Conference hosted by the OUBOCES. 

Building Equity Team Survey

In breakout rooms, committee members reviewed the results of a “common concerns and wish list” survey that was completed by the building equity teams to prioritize needs that had been identified during their January meetings. Each breakout room focused on one of the four topics identified in the survey and reported key finding to the committee:

• Room 1 – District Support: Highest on the list perhaps was hiring a more diverse staff. Valley Central’s Parent University is something that might be useful to bring back to connect parents and promote inclusivity; however, it was agreed that it was a higher priority to make the students feel included and make the school community an inclusive place in a more immediate and urgent way. The group was unaware of anything other than merit and scores that have led to access to advanced courses, but their experience was admittedly limited.
• Room 2 – Awareness and Knowledge: The group reported that they were uncertain how some of it was applicable to some subjects. For example, how can someone talk about racism in math? How can we find out students’ backgrounds without getting “too touchy”? How do we get to know students without being intrusive? A student suggested that the activities and discussions in the Race, Identity, and Justice elective were effective in bringing up and discussing identity in a way that was not intrusive. It was reported that awareness training strictly for staff was a limited approach. It would be superior if the awareness training was expanded to students. If the goal is inclusivity, then all of the voices should be centered, perhaps especially the students as a priority over the teachers. Accountability also needs to be put in place so that staff cannot “opt out” of being aware of their students’ needs.
• Room 3 – Teaching and Curriculum: The group reported that it would be better if a higher priority was placed on curriculum. For example, is there a way to maintain the importance of Black History Month, not make that the only time we talk about Black History. They reported that it should not be so isolated. There was some concern that some people taking the survey did not see this as an area of concern.
• Room 4 – Facilitating Classroom Discussions:  There was a high concern for how to approach discussions about social justice. A student had shared an example of a lesson in his kindergarten class about the Civil Rights Movement during which the teacher did not provide an answer when a Latino student asked a question about how segregation affected other Americans. The lack of a discussion, lack of an explanation of its connection to students, and limiting the topic to a Black/White dynamic doesn’t seem to be inclusive of other experiences. How do we give tools for teachers to have a totally inclusive conversation? Segregation, for example, is not strictly a Black and White discussion. Slavery, for example, was not strictly a Southern phenomenon.

 

Continued Discussion of “Homework” from February

Committee members who did not have the opportunity last month share a quote from the February readings and discuss why it resonated for them and had the opportunity to do so.

A student quoted a passage from Courageous Conversations, that “If a teacher is just handed a culturally relevant strategy without first establishing the language or ability to talk about race, that strategy will most likely be used ineffectively, if at all, because the teacher does not understand it or necessarily believe in its relevance.” She remarked that last year some teachers mentioned the Black Lives Matter protests, but it felt like they did not actually care about it. Further, she felt that during Black History Month topics are glossed over as if teachers want credit for saying it, not because they really care.

Next, a student discussed a student narrative that the committee had read and said how he felt sympathy for how young students were put on the spot and had their innocence ruined by an experience in class where they felt singled out based strictly on their race.

Another student referred to a moment in the narrative in which the student identified themselves as a dark-skinned Black person and discussed how there is also bias and hate among people of color, and even between males and females, and that all of us need to check our biases. He also remarked about how he was subjected to racism and he thought “I thought this was a 1960s thing, but it’s not. This is happening to me right now, it’s not something from the past.”

Finally, another student commented on how they thought racism was something of the past until they went through the experience themself. And they realized that it is still prevalent and also remarked about how hurtful colorism is among people of color.

 

Subcommittee Setup

Mrs. Berry explained the plans for moving forward with the subcommittees that are being established: 

• Curriculum
• Training/Professional Development
• School Climate, Code of Conduct, and Communication
  (providing a welcoming and affirming environment for all students)
• Staff Diversity

She then provided an opportunity for members who had not had the chance to do so to to sign up. Before the next meeting of this committee, the subcommittees will meet and prepare to report the following at this committee’s next meeting: their three top concerns, three top goals, and data/information needed from the District to proceed.

The meeting concluded at 7:29P.M.

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February 4, 2021 — Virtual Meeting

Present: Z. Kurland, M. Canino, S. Berry, M. Montenora, R. Burns, L. Baker, J, Grimaldi, T. Dunn, M, Serratore, T. Balducci, D. Miller, J. Abdelsayed-Roblero, M. Catalfamo, M. Perez, N. Santiago, G. Gerome, J. Lewis Holiday, S. Lewis, M. Baxter, J. Xanthis

Welcome and Opening Remarks
Zelig Kurland, meeting chair, provided an overview of meeting agenda
Introduction of members new to the group
Members consented to sharing notes of personal introductions from the first meeting among committee members
Acknowledgement to students and recent graduates who shared narratives that were used for Administrative and Board of Education training

Discussion of “Homework”

“Homework” readings consisted of quotes from James Baldwin, Glenn Singleton’s Courageous Conversations, Howard Stevenson’s Promoting Racial Literacy in Schools, Paul Gorsky’s “Avoiding Racial Equity Detours,” and a student narrative.
Various members shared quotes from the readings that stood out to them, had an impact on them, and that related to their own experiences in school.
A student noted that racism is taught as being something from the distant past and that he did not realize until he was older that some of the things he experienced were due to racism; he suggested teaching how it exists in the present and then connecting it to the past would be more valuable and engaging.

Discussion of Professional Development

Zelig: awareness, knowledge, and then skills are the foundation for professional development (staff training).
Solicitation of feedback about pros and cons of hiring an outside organization to conduct training for culturally responsive teaching. 
Multiple members of the group are in favor of bringing in outside agencies to help train staff; for example, to bring in a fresh perspective.
District has begun to meet with outside groups to solicit proposals for training.
The typical process is to train building equity teams first and then to train the rest of the staff.
Committee members asked to be part of the conversations with outside agencies before choosing a group to work with staff. Zelig will inquire about arranging a meeting with members of the committee or the whole committee.
A committee member noted that planning and assessing the needs of a district (for example, through an (“equity report card”) — as opposed to the capacity and competency for training — are two very different skills and that an organization that is good at one is not necessarily good at the other.  We need a group or person to focus on the training piece. 

Subcommittee Formation / Organization

No specific roadmap for subcommittee identified yet, but interest in subcommittees has been shared by our large committee members
Subcommittee meeting can take place once or twice a month; the Chair will continue to look for guidance while making plans based on the interest that members indicated through the survey that had been circulated
We will look to find someone to head each subcommittee and set goals for each subcommittee
A student asked if it would make sense for a student to be on the Curriculum subcommittee; a high school teacher responded that student input would be very valuable.
Anyone interested in joining as co-chair of the District Committee, send an email to Zelig.

Discussion of Next Meeting’s Agenda

Solicitation of recommendations for next meeting
Next meeting is Thursday, March 11, 2021 from 6-7:15 PM
Agenda will be to complete discussion of the “homework” and to continue organization of subcommittees

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January 7, 2021 — Virtual Meeting

The meeting commenced at 6:00PM.

Present: Shonda Berry, parent;  Norelis Santiago, parent; Michael Baxter, parent; Tanhena Pacheco Dunn, parent; Courtney Grogan, parent; Geon Gerome, student; Jared Lewis-Holiday, student; John Ramos, parent; Linda Baker, parent and Middle School Nurse; Jennifer Grimaldi, parent and teacher at Berea; Iris Rose, parent and teacher at Walden; David Miller, parent and VCHS teacher (English and Drama); Melanie Montenora, parent and school psychologist; Sonia Lewis, parent and BOE member; John Xanthis, Superintendent; Marianne Serratore, Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction; Tom Balducci, VCMS Assistant Principal; Russell Burns, parent and VCMS Assistant Principal;Zelig Kurland, VCHS teacher and District Equity Coordinator; Michele Catalfamo, paraprofessional at Berea, parent of VC alumni

Introduction by Joseph Bond, Board of Education (BOE) President

Zelig Kurland, meeting chair, provided an overview of the context surrounding the committee’s creation and current status:

• an ad hoc committee created last spring was first created to listen to parent and student concerns and also began work that needs to be continued
• this committee was created through an application process
• Equity Teams have been established in each building to support this work
• Building Principals are meeting with the Equity Coordinator and Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction on Monday, January 11 to discuss next steps for the teams
• Our immediate focus is to establish goals and an action plan. The two large pieces are the mindsets of staff and the structural part, policies and procedures

Guidelines for Discussion

Chair presented guidelines for discussion being provided to building equity teams.

Summary: Make Room for Multiple Perspectives; Focus on Impact, Not Intentions; Step Up, Step Back; Stories Stay, Learning Goes (confidentiality); Design Next Steps Together; Keep Focus on our Common Goals; Put Relationships First.

Logistics

Request for parents or community members interested in serving as co-chair to express their interest at the next meeting after we build relationships within the committee.

Date of next meeting set to February 4, 2021 from 6:00-7:15PM. Subsequent meetings will occur on the second Thursday of each month.

Chair provided an opportunity to discuss whether the committee name, procedures, mission statement, and/or discussion guidelines that had been established previously should be revisited. No motions were made to revisit those items at this time. 

Subcommittee Formation

Chair stated that subcommittees are really going to get the work done: curriculum, recruitment, hiring, and retention of diverse staff, competency of staff, code of conduct and communication (incidents of bias), and how we will measure progress (climate surveys, data, etc.).

Several members agreed that distributing a Google Forms survey prior to the next meeting would be an easy way to participate. 

Discussion of Next Meeting’s Agenda: Professional Development

A member asked about what has been done already to help identify gaps.

Response: for staff in general, there has been piecemeal training but this is the beginning of a strategic plan. Over the summer, Administrators and the BOE took an awareness training (unconscious bias, how are students feeling as expressed through student  narratives).

Chair to provide “homework” before the next meeting so the committee has a common language for discussion. Shared that the District is researching possible outside providers to help the committee determine if such assistance would be of use.

Question from chair: should our third meeting focus on curriculum or maintaining a welcoming and affirming environment (school climate)…or should we wait to determine? Members agreed that it is best to table determination of the third meeting’s agenda.

Open Floor at Closing

Member comments:

• It is important to capture a baseline, a starting point, on each topic or subcommittee. 
• We should take our time and get things right.
• Positive emotions, recognizes much more about VC, hearing everyone’s perspective gives hope…we are capable of wonderful things working together, going to sleep well tonight hearing what has happened in the first meeting, thank you to teachers, administrators and students who are here on committee. It sounds like everyone really cares. 
• Let’s do it right this time, thank you everyone for joining us tonight.