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Equity Toolkit
Introduction
Dear Educators,
Imagine a school where ALL the children are loved and challenged, where the educators are empowered and where families and communities are seen as critical partners. Each of us is uniquely positioned to create a learning environment that honors the talents and gifts of each student so that they are prepared to thrive in their careers, in their homes and in their greater communities. This toolkit has been designed to give school leaders the tools and resources needed to capitalize on those unique strengths that foster supportive and effective relationships wherein the community works together to mitigate barriers to success. We designed this toolkit to support you and your community as you further build a learning environment where every student and every educator is supported to find success. READ MORE
Entering the Journey
Below you will see the sections of this Toolkit with a summary of what is included in each. This is followed by some suggestions for utilizing this Toolkit, as well as links to Self Assessments to get the journey started. The intention of this Toolkit is to serve as a launching point for starting or deepening conversations in educational contexts focused on ways to value each voice and consider opportunities to be responsive in our work and in our systems. Explore the summaries below and the expanded information in the subsequent sections of this web-based tool.
Overview of This Toolkit
This toolkit is designed to provide user-friendly information and resources to support school and district leaders in centering equity in their work to support positive outcomes for the students they serve. We are all in different phases of our equity journey, and that’s OK. You are already off to a great start because you are here, you are reading, and you are open. We hope this toolkit supports you on your quest to create welcoming environments where all students and families feel a sense of belonging and all students are supported to achieve success. This toolkit is organized into the five sections listed below.
Tools of Cultural Proficiency
The four tools of Cultural Proficiency combine to provide a framework for analyzing our values and behaviors, as well as reflecting on your school’s or agency’s policies and practices. This toolkit uses this framework as a starting point to consider how we can deepen our understanding of self, others, context, and implementation of educational practices to be inclusive and responsive to the needs of the community served.
Understanding Context
The Understanding Context section includes voices from the field through examples, illuminating similarities and differences between students, laws/policies that impact students and how these aspects impact learning and self-development. This section also includes naming our current reality, school-based policy best practices, different datasets to review with an equity lens, gathering data from community, family, staff and students, examples of survey questions and tips to increase feedback participation. As leaders, we are uniquely positioned to foster a sense of belonging for students and families and understanding the context within which we work is imperative toward that end.
Understanding Self
Understanding Self is a key component to understanding the root causes of a range of inequities at the school and district levels – inequities that prevent members of the school community from feeling safe, like they belong or have value. Each of us are made up of a variety of nuanced perspectives, and as leaders, it is important that we reflect on who we are.
Implementation
The Implementation section is where the journeys, reflections and actions described in the Understanding Self, Understanding Others and Understanding Context sections come together to inform a concrete, student-focused and equity-informed action plan. This section, in particular, focuses on how the toolkit can strengthen the school and district planning processes, such as the Unified Improvement Plan (UIP) process
or any other strategic plan or improvement plan.
Understanding Others
As leaders, once we have interrogated and are aware of our own beliefs, thoughts and actions (see Understanding Self section), it is important that we understand and examine the current and historical experiences of others. Our lived experiences shape the way we see others and consequently requires continued reflection. Understanding others helps to build trust and connection across differences. It also allows us to learn more about people’s experiences beyond the surface level and helps us foster true understanding.
Evaluation
The Evaluation section provides guiding questions that can help evaluate how well and how equitably any actions taken by the school or district, including throughout the course of creating and implementing the
improvement plan (e.g. UIP), worked. The guiding questions in this section draw from key considerations laid out across all sections of the toolkit. The evaluation process will likely prompt you to revisit different sections of the toolkit depending on your reflections and responses.
Ways to Use This Toolkit
There are multiple ways to use this toolkit, with a few outlined below. Ultimately, we hope that you leverage the information in the ways that best support your endeavors to support students’ success.
Starting with Self
Because effective leaders are reflective and self-aware, we strongly encourage you to begin with the Understanding Self section.
Reflecting upon your own journey and beliefs, mitigating any potential biases and building your own ongoing reflective practice is the foundation of equity work and will make you a stronger leader of others in this work.
Going Deeper
Equity is a broad topic that can and should be incorporated into all aspects of leadership. In the same regard, organizing all that information can be overwhelming, especially for leaders who are simultaneously addressing multiple priorities. This toolkit provides an outline of initial resources to support you in this work. However, if you feel you are further along in your equity journey or wish to further explore a particular topic, this toolkit provides a Resource Appendix and links to other resources to provide more in-depth content and study.
Targeted Support
As leaders, we often are pulled to address multiple priorities in an urgent manner. This toolkit allows you to begin with the section or topic that is more important for you. As you explore the content and resources aligned to your needs, the toolkit will provide links to additional aligned information that can further supplement and support the area you are exploring.
Following the Data
If you are unsure where to start in the toolkit, the self-assessments can help identify the best place to start. Reflect on each statement, and respond with Always, Frequently, Occasionally, Rarely or Never. The statements are organized by section, and you might consider beginning with the section where you receive more Never or Rarely comments.
As a How To Manual: From Start to Finish
The toolkit can also be used as a how to manual, by navigating through each section sequentially. By exploring the sections as a learning series, each section can be used to build the foundation for diving into the work outlined in the five sections.
Self Assessment
A critical first step toward change is knowing oneself. This assessment is designed to help you identify which section to explore first.
Likert Scale: Always (5), Frequently (4), Sometimes (3), Rarely (2), and Never (1)
Acknowledgments
This toolkit was prepared in partnership with the Western Educational Equity Assistance Center (WEEAC) at WestEd, which is authorized under Title IV of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and funded by the U.S. Department of Education. Equity Assistance Centers provide technical assistance and training to school districts, tribal and state education agencies to promote equitable education resources and opportunities regardless of race, sex, national origin or religion. The WEEAC at WestEd partners with Pacific Resources for Education and Learning, and Attendance Works to assist Alaska, American Samoa, Arizona, California, Colorado, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, Hawaiʻi, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington and Wyoming.
The contents of this toolkit were developed under a grant from the Department of Education. However, the contents do not necessarily represent the policy of the Department of Education, and you should not assume endorsement by the federal government.
This page is maintained by the Federal Programs and Supports Unit.
Please help us keep it current by reporting any issues, inaccurate information, or suggestions for improvements.