Tackling Inequitable Educational Policies & Practices: The Design & Implementation of the District-Level Diagnostic

Abstract

Throughout the nation, enormous racial and socio-economic achievement and opportunity gaps endure in rural, urban and suburban communities. During the course of my residency, I sought to uncover what leadership attributes and strategies allow some superintendents to effectively close those gaps and make their districts more equitable. I then used that information to design a district-level equity diagnostic for the NYC Leadership Academy (NYCLA). NYCLA specializes in preparing and supporting leaders across the country who are committed to breaking down academic barriers for historically marginalized students and to creating enriching and inclusive schools for students. The tool is designed to help superintendents who are interested in forwarding equity work, but who need guidance to diagnose and address their districts’ most urgent inequities. The district-level diagnostic establishes a process for analyzing data and policies for inequities districts are perpetuating and developing an action plan to address those inequities. It includes The Guidebook, which details every step of the process as well as political considerations for leading the work strategically, and The Playbook, which has specific examples of what an equitable district would ideally look like. Superintendents who reviewed the diagnostic agreed it provides an effective pathway for unpacking inequities and for designing an action plan to address them. A pilot has shown that coaching around political context and leadership of challenging conversations about race are critical to the successful implementation of the diagnostic.