Alliance for Diversity & Equity

1. Alliance for Diversity & Equity Report to the KSD Board June 9, 2010

2. ADE MISSION Provide Kent School District the necessary guidance and assistance to create an equitable, academically enriching, safe, and welcoming school environment for all students, their parents and guardians, and the community.

3. HONORS, AP, AND IB ACTION PLAN Goal: Ensure proportionate access to and participation in highly capable, honors, advanced placement and International Baccalaureate classes Focused Groups: Students: Begin reaching students in elementary school with important information Families: Break down language barriers and create effective communication District Staff: Increase awareness of underrepresentation in AP/IB and honors classes

4. Connection to KSD Goals Increase Student Achievement Each and every KSD student will meet high standards and achieve at high academic levels in preparation for success in college, career, and civic life. Demonstrate Leadership for Success Kent School District will demonstrate proactive, supportive, accountable, reflective, and distributive leadership practices. Collaborate Through Partnerships As a means of promoting student success and well-being, the Kent School District will increase the number of authentic internal and external collaborative partnerships.

5. Strategies Students: Provide an informative student prospective on the positives and benefits of taking Honors and AP/IB classes Parents: Offer a Parent Night to discuss Honors/AP/IB opportunities and benefits Make connections with community outreach groups to strengthen relationships and increase awareness about AP/IB/Honors District: Staff training to raise awareness of underrepresentation of student groups in Honors, AP and IB courses Focus on increased expectations and critical teacher reflections on student abilities and expectations for all students

6. Next Steps Students: Inform school leaders, ensure school participation Investigate transportation costs Families: Initiate communication between outreach groups and families Encourage participation at meetings/sessions District Staff: Support /develop building-wide staff training for staff Secure funding for training

7. Student Learning & Curriculum Action Team Goal: Ensure culturally relevant curriculum and instruction is being applied for all studentsStrategy: Embed cultural relevance as part of curriculum and instructionInitial Plan of Action:Create a research-based rubric that defines levels of culturally relevant curriculum and instruction

8. Connection to KSD Goals 1. Increase Student Achievement Each and every Kent School District student will meet high standards and achieve at high academic levels in preparation for success in college, career, and civic life. 3. Provide Quality And Innovative Learning Environments Kent School District will provide equitable access to quality instruction through innovative learning environments that stimulate thought, promote skill development, and accelerate learning for each and every student.

9. Action Plan Gather qualitative data to discern why school is and is not working for different ethnic groups Identify students of different ethnic group and gender that are doing well and struggling in school Conduct focus groups with the various ethnic groups to discern what next steps ADE can take to help ensure culturally relevant curriculum and instruction for ALL

10. Lessons Learned Hispanic Boys No guidance on college plans – concerned about cost Need classroom directions repeated but afraid to ask for help Hispanic Girls Family commitments cause them to be late to school Value relationships with teachers/adults Pacific Islander Girls Family is instrumental in their success African American Boys Having someone to check in on them is important Native American Girls Missing tools (Computers, printers, access to the Web) Family life/commitments and no future goals Native American Males Difficulty blending their culture into school

11. Next Steps Mobilize teams to conduct Focus Group interviews in the community and at additional schools Create an action plan to increase parental involvement education Host forum(s) with Business and Community to share critical school success information

12. Discipline and Disproportionality Action Team Goal: All incidents of discrimination and harassment at each building that violate the zero tolerance policy should be reported to a designated person at that site in addition to the KSD Title IX Officer.

13. Connection to KSD Goals Increase student achievement Each and every KSD student will meet high standards and achieve at high academic levels in preparation for success in college, career, and civil life. Provide quality and innovative learning environments Kent School District will provide equitable access to quality instruction through innovative learning environments that stimulate thought, promote skill development, and accelerate learning for each and every student.

14. Strategy Create a process where students and families can safely communicate behaviors that may be discriminatory or harassing Define and develop a consistent process for administrators to determine what constitutes a violation of the zero tolerance policy

15. Action Steps Support the district in adopting a K-12 Bullying and Harassment Curriculum with an instructional delivery model with defined intervention strategies for teaching replacement behaviors Support the district in creating a standardized communication format for informing families and tools for reporting incidences Support the district in creating a standardized definition of and procedures for reporting zero tolerance incidences

16. Next Steps Explore and adopt a K-12 Bullying/Harassment Curriculum. Secure input and approval on standardization of bullying/harassment reporting procedures and documentation for implementation in 2010-2011 Provide ongoing professional development support to train staff on recognizing bullying/ harassment and using district forms

17. Minority Staff Recruitment, Retention and Diversity Training Strategy:  Identify resources outside of the traditional process that create accesses to a broader pool of candidates and incentives to attract those candidates

18. Connection to KSD Goals Attract and Retain Quality Personnel Kent School District intentionally seeks and retains quality staff members who reflect the diversity of our community and contribute to the fulfillment of our vision within a culture of respect and collaboration.

19. Action Steps Invest in our own Community investment Continuing education Recruitment incentives Visibility KSD recruitment & retention strategies

20. Next Steps Partner with PSESD to identify grant writer Research grant opportunities Hire a District grant writer Provide support for marketing and outreach campaign Provide support for implementation of a strong retention plan

21. Questions ADE Website: Alliance for Diversity & Equity