We Want to Hear Your Equity Work Stories
Educators are inspired by other educators.
In February of 2020, just one month before we would begin stay-at-home orders to fight the spread of COVID-19, the Equity, Disproportionality & Design team gathered a group of community designers to build their idea for a parenting-facing data report.
Our community designers were teachers, parents, and administrators who volunteered their time to build services that promote equity in schools. Since this was volunteer work, I was grateful that design team members gave their time after their work day to design with us. So grateful in fact, that my thank you’s started when they entered the building and continued until they left.
But while I was preoccupied with the time they gave us, I missed what this opportunity gave them. I was surprised when one design team member stopped drawing on the easel she was using to mock up a prototype data display and said to me: “I actually look forward to coming here. This kind of work is what I got into education for.”
The lesson from that day was clear: the opportunity to be an educator that promotes equity in schools is, in and of itself, a source of inspiration. It’s a chance for educators to reconnect with what they set out to do when they took their first teacher education course or applied for that first principal job: working to make sure all students have a fair chance at reaching their full potential.
Share Your Stories With Us
I and the ED&D team want to broadcast your work to other educators in California because we know it’s a powerful way to inspire others to take action. If you’ve got a story about how you’re promoting equity in your school, district, or SELPA using something you’ve learned at one of our trainings, would you please share it with us?
We want to hear your story in whatever way you want to tell it. Record some audio and send it to us. Draw us a picture. Write us an essay. Type up a Tweet. Photograph an equity meeting agenda. Seriously—however you think it will inspire others to take action for equity.
Send us your story by emailing restrellado@sdcoe.net or sending a direct message us on Twitter at @e_d_and_d.
Real stories from educators doing the work are a powerful tool to inspire. We’re looking forward to hearing from you and to sharing your work with others!