We are public school parents from high-income, low-income, and mixed- income elementary and middle schools in District 3, and surrounding school districts. We came together out of concern about the lack of commitment to school equity reflected in DOE and CEC planning, especially as reflected in District 3. We are concerned about the deferral of equity discussions, and about casting issues like overcrowding as separate from or more immediate than inequity. Segregated, unequal schools impact the rights of every child in the district, and they enshrine income and racial inequality in our future.
Decades of failed desegregation in the US teach us that when families with less privilege are pitted against those with more, less privileged families lose. When equity measures are discretionary, those with privilege opt out. In D3, where there is so much resistance to change, we must start with principles that set a baseline for equity. We urge the CEC and DOE to adopt principles by which to pursue school equity, including these:
Desegregation and equity must be a first principle in all D3 policymaking.
Unequal schools present a crisis with significant immediate and long- term impacts on every student. School arrangements that are beneficial to some, but that are built on race and income inequities that harm others, must not be preserved. Problems like overcrowding should be addressed through plans to make schools more equitable.
Problem-solving must engage the schools of the whole district.
It must focus first on supporting schools disadvantaged by policies that have fostered inequity.
Schools in the lower end of D3 have been the focus of admissions and populations planning for more than 2 years, forfeiting the opportunity to engage parents in the lower-income schools in the upper district. Overcrowding isn’t local to oversubscribed schools: it’s a symptom of district-wide inequity that makes a few schools “schools of choice.”
All schools, all families: the entire district must be included in desegregation and equity mandates.
Implementing changes school-by-school or in limited pilots simply moves segregation to other schools. Similarly, equitable admissions policies must apply to everyone, without allowing “workarounds” that exempt privileged families.
Decades of failed desegregation in the US teach us that when families with less privilege are pitted against those with more, less privileged families lose. When equity measures are discretionary, those with privilege opt out. In D3, where there is so much resistance to change, we must start with principles that set a baseline for equity. We urge the CEC and DOE to adopt principles by which to pursue school equity, including these:
Desegregation and equity must be a first principle in all D3 policymaking.
Unequal schools present a crisis with significant immediate and long- term impacts on every student. School arrangements that are beneficial to some, but that are built on race and income inequities that harm others, must not be preserved. Problems like overcrowding should be addressed through plans to make schools more equitable.
Problem-solving must engage the schools of the whole district.
It must focus first on supporting schools disadvantaged by policies that have fostered inequity.
Schools in the lower end of D3 have been the focus of admissions and populations planning for more than 2 years, forfeiting the opportunity to engage parents in the lower-income schools in the upper district. Overcrowding isn’t local to oversubscribed schools: it’s a symptom of district-wide inequity that makes a few schools “schools of choice.”
All schools, all families: the entire district must be included in desegregation and equity mandates.
Implementing changes school-by-school or in limited pilots simply moves segregation to other schools. Similarly, equitable admissions policies must apply to everyone, without allowing “workarounds” that exempt privileged families.
Schools that already serve low-income students must be allowed to preserve what’s working for them – including Title I status.
Any plans for changing admissions, shifting school populations, or reallocating resources must allow Title I schools to keep what’s working for them, including their Title I status, and eligibility for any other programs they value.
Charter schools must be included in a district-wide plan for desegregation and equity, and held to the same standards as all other schools.
Any plans for changing admissions, shifting school populations, or reallocating resources must allow Title I schools to keep what’s working for them, including their Title I status, and eligibility for any other programs they value.
Charter schools must be included in a district-wide plan for desegregation and equity, and held to the same standards as all other schools.
Charter schools have been a “workaround” for unequal schools, deferring attention to fixing them; and have added to school inequity by squeezing existing schools and hand-picking students.
PTA and “Friends of the School” fundraising must be equalized or ended.
PTAs play a quasi-public role in funding schools where state and city budgets are inadequate. At the same time, they create massive budget inequities among schools. Funds raised by PTAs cannot continue to be exempt from funding equity rules. Other school districts require PTAs to share some or all of the money they raise.
Equity means mandating inclusionary practices in schools and curricula.
Long after admissions, schools build or diminish equity by how they work: from multilingual materials, to investing in teachers, to curricula that engage and value the lived experiences of families in the school, and the movements for justice happening now in our communities.
Equity needs a serious community process, far beyond CEC meetings.
Parent voices heard in D3 debates have been almost entirely limited to those entitled and powerful enough to pose demands and wage campaigns. D3 should follow standard community planning practice: pursuing input from those who haven’t been heard and those most negatively affected by the status quo. We need a process (like the one CEC1 has used) that invites parents into a collaboration to identify values, priorities, and concerns, and to jointly think through solutions – rather than inviting them to battle each other at CEC meetings.
PTA and “Friends of the School” fundraising must be equalized or ended.
PTAs play a quasi-public role in funding schools where state and city budgets are inadequate. At the same time, they create massive budget inequities among schools. Funds raised by PTAs cannot continue to be exempt from funding equity rules. Other school districts require PTAs to share some or all of the money they raise.
Equity means mandating inclusionary practices in schools and curricula.
Long after admissions, schools build or diminish equity by how they work: from multilingual materials, to investing in teachers, to curricula that engage and value the lived experiences of families in the school, and the movements for justice happening now in our communities.
Equity needs a serious community process, far beyond CEC meetings.
Parent voices heard in D3 debates have been almost entirely limited to those entitled and powerful enough to pose demands and wage campaigns. D3 should follow standard community planning practice: pursuing input from those who haven’t been heard and those most negatively affected by the status quo. We need a process (like the one CEC1 has used) that invites parents into a collaboration to identify values, priorities, and concerns, and to jointly think through solutions – rather than inviting them to battle each other at CEC meetings.
