Educators “to serve as change agents”
by Michael Bielawski
The Vermont’s Ethnic and Social Equity Standards Working Group wants to make Vermont education more inclusive by changing school policies and curricula, which it says may require “unequal distribution of resources and services” across racial and ethnic groups.
They seek statewide standards for schools to follow aimed at what they consider equity and inclusiveness. The Group wants lawmakers to require equity training for school boards, they want a mandate that children can access certain library materials, and they want the state to collect more data on school disciplinary actions.
They may also require Ethnic Studies be taken courses for students to graduate.
The Group recently finished a final report of recommendations for legislators. It includes their desire “to embed an ethnic studies framework and criteria in the Educational Content Standards, PreK through Grade 12, with a focus on increasing cultural competency among students.”
There are four primary initiatives.
The first priority is getting everyone on board with the new policies. It states, “Designing evaluative tools and metrics that school boards, school staff, parents/caregivers, and local activists can deploy to assess school policies, curricula, alternative learning models, student disciplinary systems, and pedagogical practices in relation to Ethnic and Social Equity Studies.”
The second: materials and lessons in the classroom. They will be “Forming and supporting local curriculum committees with staff and community involvement to align curricula with the goals of Act 1 (2019) and, in time, with revised educational standards and State Board of Education rules.”
The third is getting teachers on board. It states, “Building professional development collaboratives that recruit Vermont educators to undertake postgraduate course work in ethnic/social equity studies and facilitating networks of educators who want to be part of a pedagogical support community and to serve as change agents.”
The fourth involves using online courses. They will be “Exploring the feasibility of offering virtual academic courses in Ethnic and Social Equity Studies to students, educators, and school staff and, potentially, to parents/caregivers and community members.”
In particular, they want to link “student performance and curriculum in alignment with the Ethnic Studies Framework, PreK through Grade 12.” In the framework’s language, they call for Vermont to “consider instituting an Ethnic Studies graduation requirement for high school students.”
The framework considers requirements for the composition of the state school board, calling for “a makeup of the State Board of Education that is representative of our diverse education system.”
The group put forth recommendations to the Agency of Education in April of 2022. It states that all students in public and independent schools “are afforded educational opportunities that are substantially equal in quality, equitable, anti-racist, culturally responsive, anti-discriminatory, and inclusive, and enable them to achieve or exceed the standards approved by the State Board of Education.”
The same report to the AOE includes a detailed definition of the word ‘equity’.
“Equity goes beyond formal equality where all students are treated the same,” it states. “To be achieved, Equity requires an inclusive school environment and may necessitate an unequal distribution of resources and services based on the needs of each student.”
Amanda Garcés of the Vermont Human Rights Commission recently told WCAX that these efforts are about “a holistic approach to our students’ safety,” she said.
The group is also asking that there be more investigation into how curriculums are funded and that districts hire more ethnic studies teachers.
These efforts occur despite mounting pushback against social justice in schools. Aaron Kindsvatter, a former professor in the College of Education and Social Services at the University of Vermont, currently in private practice, is organizing local chapters for FAIR (Foundation Against Intolerance and Racism), a nationwide organization.
The author is a reporter for the Vermont Daily Chronicle