Advocating for greater equity in education

It is appropriate to recognize that education has always been at the forefront of the American dream. As the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. professed, educational attainment speaks to the core of democracy in the United States. To date, there remains a definitive connection between academic success and access to opportunities for scholarship and wealth. The purpose of a highly qualified education to prepare citizens for an everchanging society yet remains an ideal that many can see but have limited opportunities to touch. This includes women and men living in poverty, minorities and immigrants pursuing the American dream of freedom and the pursuit of happiness.

There have been many factors used to separate the haves from the have-nots, including intelligence testing, which is historically culturally biased; and sporadic and inconsistent funding for schools determined by demographics, tax base and ZIP codes. The results are tremendous achievement and opportunity gaps among ethnicity, gender, and educational settings — urban, suburban and rural.

This has led to an outcry from children, parents, communities, and political officials demanding quality and fairly funded education to close the gaps of educational accountability, equity and access. Providing students with a highquality education has become a focal point, as the future of America depends on having a highly skilled educational system and workforce.

School leaders have the unique challenge of compartmentalizing the issues at hand, understanding the past, yet moving with a sense of urgency to prepare children for the future. Today, this journey to educational excellence must begin with the students, parents and local communities served.

Though this may seem to be an unconventional way of addressing the challenges in providing a quality education, it helps to remember that historically, education has always been a local, intimate phenomenon. Addressing small groups as a microcosm in the hopes of impacting the whole (our democracy) remains relevant in addressing the inconsistencies of equity and access.

Though many movements have played a significant role in creating unrest and reform that impact how we educate our youth, educators still need to look specifically at the needs of each child in each community in our efforts to prepare students for the future.

The strides made in education toward equality are not the end all be all. The success of this movement will begin and end with the students advocating to be served in schools with an equal playing field influenced by equity, where each student is unique and served based on their individual needs.

Thus, many school districts across the United States, including Pennsylvania and all 18 school districts in Berks County have committed to providing equity and access for all students by seeking and adopting:

• Educational equity policy, incorporating an equity lens in all decisions across all departments and schools.

• Adopting school board resolutions for equity and antiracism.

• Developing equity advisory committees, school equity teams and districtwide equity support teams.

• Developing and implementing equity-focused action plans to address the recruitment, hiring, and retention of a more diverse staff.

• Developing and implementing multiyear deep equity professional development cycles for teachers, administrators and staff.

• Developing and implementing equitable and proactive disciplinary practices.

• Incorporating students’ and families’ voices to the school improvement process through targeted programming.

Together, we have the capacity and expertise to become a force in the publicschool equity space. Equity in education is a form of social justice in an ever-changing society, and educators who motivate children to infinite possibilities are in fact reframing the way students view their chances at success.