Championing Equity and Diversity

A school community in need evaluates each action for its cultural impact

“Dear Me,” the letter begins.

“Guess what? You do not realize it yet, but you are a champion. You are about to experience your most transformative year in education — not just for you, but for your teachers and their students as well.”

I knew all too well what to expect from the rest of the letter.

My signature sat at the bottom of the page. I wrote the note to myself a year prior when I became the assistant superintendent for equity and diversity for Burlington County Institute of Technology, which serves about 2,000 students in southern New Jersey. I had outlined some big goals for myself and those who worked in our school district:

• Start reflective conversations;
• Discuss equity and diversity perspectives, best practices and initiatives that would benefit the district with all stakeholders;
• Implement best practices focused on equity and diversity;
• Provide training on the ideas expressed in Courageous Conversations About Race, a book by Glenn Singleton that sparks explicit communication;
• Conduct data analysis on equity;
• Build equity-centered instructional leadership; and
• Initiate equity practices in the district.

The school district embraced these ambitious goals of mine, enabling me to meet and exceed them. Our district’s equity journey in the last year has affected how well we work together. More importantly, it has set the standard for transforming instruction and learning.