Board Member Turell Defends DEIJ Coordinator Position

[Board Member Yusi Turell sent me the following essay for publication here.  It appears she added an introduction to her presentation notes for the Deliberative Session on Tuesday. Thanks Yusi. I'll write more about the Deliberative Session and the School Board race soon.]

Thank you to everyone who braved the wintery roads to attend Tuesday’s Deliberative Session. All warrant articles passed, including the 2022-23 budget as presented, and there was overwhelming support for the DEIJ Coordinator position. The warrant articles will be presented to all Durham, Lee, and Madbury voters in the March 8 municipal elections.

For loyal readers of the ORCSD Clean Slate blog (I include myself!) who weren’t able to attend the Deliberative Session or view the full recording, I wanted to share how the DEIJ position was introduced on Tuesday. No new information here - just another way to access the information and a response in the ‘official blog record’ to Dr. Sample’s recent guest essay.

DEIJ Presentation

2022 ORCSD Deliberative Session

[That's supposed to start at Yusi's presentation at 13:23; if not please click here - Dean]

Here is the text of the DEIJ Coordinator introduction:

DEIJ stands for Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice. It reflects that we live in an increasingly diverse country and community, which is a strength to be celebrated. It reflects that all children in our schools, and all people inside and outside of our schools, have the right to safety and belonging - and the right to see themselves represented in what and how they are learning. As a district, Oyster River has had a longstanding commitment to supporting ALL students.

• We have policies on transgender rights and anti-racism, and our sustainability policy highlights the intersections between social, environmental, and economic justice. Our special education program has a $10-million budget and a dedicated director who was recognized as this year’s NH Special Education Administrator of the Year.
• Over the past 5 years, we have worked with consultants to provide DEIJ-related trainings and to recommend how the district can improve our work in this area.
• We have held a number of community forums that have been well-attended.
• Individual teachers have updated their curricula to include more diverse perspectives and build students’ critical thinking skills, and taken steps to ensure all students feel welcome and seen. This is despite NH legislation that threatens teachers’ livelihoods if they teach about so-called ‘divisive concepts.’

Despite this progress, as a district, we have hit our limit in the expertise and capacity necessary to do this work skillfully and consistently. Dr. Morse likens this situation to one we faced with technology ten years ago. Ten years ago, early adopting teachers and principals who were into technology supported and taught it. It was a ‘hit or miss’ approach, some classes used and taught technology while others did not. It was not until the district supported a comprehensive and systemic approach, inclusive of tech support and tech integration, that we could guarantee the skills students were taught at each grade level.

Likewise, we currently have a ‘hit or miss’ approach to DEIJ. Some teachers are doing amazing work. The primary role of the DEIJ Coordinator will be to work with our educators to develop best practices for curriculum and instruction, as well as support compassionate, equitable policies and practices. This work is consistent with our Vision of a Graduate and our strategic priorities of a Multi-Tiered System of Support (MTSS) and Socio-Emotional Learning (SEL). It is also what we heard from the many teachers, students, and parents who wrote in or shared their experiences - and how, despite good intent, we were falling short of our commitment to support every student. Beyond consultants - who deliver a training or write a report then leave - we need a member of the district team who can build trust and relationships and be available to support situations as they unfold.

By design, this is an integrated position. We are not carving off a separate DEIJ fiefdom, we are ensuring that administrators and faculty have extra expertise and capacity to meet their goals. We already have an Assistant Superintendent who oversees K-12 curriculum and instruction, but she needs support to integrate DEIJ skillfully. Similarly, our special education director, Catherine Plourde, has noted the critical overlaps between DEIJ challenges and mental and emotional health. Because this is an integrated position, the indicators we will use to measure the success of this role will be similar to how our administration is evaluated currently - e.g., MTSS metrics and academic achievement especially with historically marginalized groups; the Youth Risk Behavior Survey and other data on SEL; the development of vertically aligned K-12 competencies; and so on.

I know there will be other questions in the discussion, so will turn back to Brian.