Client
Seattle Public School District (Central Office)
Year
2020
Services

Project Management, Research, Organizational Design, Community Partnership

Policies & Procedures

An Anti-Racist, Emancipatory & Liberating School District

Seattle Public School (SPS) District, like all institutions in the nation, is undergoing the process to become an anti-racist entity and provide indiscriminate access to a quality education–a human right. The historical legacy of structural racism and the present-day harm endured by communities of color has undermined the ability of the institution to build trusting relationships with the oppressed populations serviced. However, it is of upmost importance for the institution to ascertain the depth, severity, nature, and the various points populations encounter harm. The general objectives of the contract were as follows:

1. Analyze the results of the community input sessions in order to fully ascertain thematic recommendations, priorities, and concerns of communities of color who a) have experienced institutional harm and/or b) advocates for the wellbeing of harmed groups.

2. Synthesize and present the findings in a comprehensible format. The information was utilized to inform, co-design and guide the contents of District Policy #0040 and Superintendent Policy and Procedures. Seattle Public Schools (SPS) is dedicated to authentic community engagement- exhibited in its commitment to a co-designed process.

3. Effectively communicate, share learnings, and exhibit transparency of process by creating a shareable medium (e.g. report) for the following audiences: community, potential institutional partners, and community stakeholders. As a result, AG performed the following:

  • Conducted group and 1:1 input sessions in order to understand the community priorities for institutional transformation;
  • Drafted and finalized district policy (via community input and iteration exercises) in collaboration with community stakeholders. The policy examined and proposed reclamation within multiple dimensions-structural, service model, and spatiality of inequities; and
  • Finalized drafts of Superintendent policy and procedures which include: strategies, objectives, tactics, performance indicators, management plan as well as evaluation plan.