Supporting student success means supporting diversity education
Editor’s note: The following text was written by Dee Sabol, executive director of the Diversity Council. It is accompanied by a letter signed by dozens of nonprofit and civic leaders to the Rochester School Board on Dec. 21, 2021.
In late December 2021, Diversity Council and other local organizations drafted and released a statement of support for Rochester Public Schools’ work on diversity, equity, and inclusion. These entities, sharing a commitment to the success of every student educated in our public schools, signed the statement to express solidarity with a Board of Education and an administration dedicated to the same. The statement and list of undersigned are presented here with context about the importance of embracing diversity education:
The continued efforts by Rochester Public Schools to build inclusion and equity are both timely and urgent. Timely because, at this moment in Minnesota, one third of our children aged 0 to 4 are of color according to MN Compass. Timely because Rochester schools are filled with students who bring a richness of racial and ethnic identity with them into our classrooms. Timely because upon graduation, our young people will lead, work with, and work for people who are very different from themselves. They will encounter individuals with a variety of geographic, economic, familial, and cultural experiences who communicate, work, and thrive in unique ways.
Dee Sabol / Submitted
Urgent because we must focus on preparing our youth for a complex world that is outpacing our current educational standards. Our youth need real world skills and foundational knowledge that respects differences and honors individuality. Urgent because our education system must address issues of diversity, or we will turn out young adults unprepared for what they will encounter in life. How can we expect our children to be successful if we send them out into a world they are not equipped to navigate?
There is a reason why corporate, governmental, and nonprofit organizations are integrating practices that build awareness of human identities and cultures. In every sector there is a growing understanding that no entity can remain competitive, effective, or relevant if it doesn’t acknowledge and embrace the opportunities presented by our changing demographics. We need to collectively support inclusive and equitable education at every point along the continuum from early childhood through career development because it is not just an issue of individual success, but one of effective regional economic development as well.
The population of Minnesota is diversifying rapidly, mirroring what is happening throughout the Midwest and across the country. Olmsted County is projected to grow in population by 37 percent between 2000 and 2030 according to the Minnesota State Legislature Reference Library, and that growth will be diverse in every sense. It will blend rural and urban, traditional and contemporary, native and immigrant, local and global, agricultural, industrial, medical, entrepreneurial. Diversity can be our strength and what propels us into a sustainable future if we support a public education system that teaches the fundamentals of diversity, equity, and inclusion. That is what underscores the importance of the statement below.
Statement of support
Rochester Public Schools Board of Education Members,
Diversity Council is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the realization of civic, health, and educational equity, writing today on behalf of a coalition of organizations with collective concern for the education and wellbeing of our community’s youth.
We wish to express our support for the ongoing diversity, equity, and inclusion work taking place within Rochester Public Schools. We recognize and admire your visible and persistent commitment to addressing diversity issues and disparities at both the individual school and district level. We are grateful for your leadership as Board of Education members and for your support of Dr. Pekel, district administrators, and staff guiding this work.
Here is why we believe diversity, equity, and inclusion work is essential to student and community success:
Our public education systems must be designed to recognize and affirm the human dignity of every student.
Our educators and administrators must have the knowledge and tools to create culturally responsive environments for students to learn and thrive.
Understanding how our systems and structures work is imperative if we are to identify and address disparities and achievement gaps.
We recognize the social and political stressors that accompany these decisions at this point in time and are resolute in our support of your decision to continue to work toward more equitable schools.
Thank you for your service and your time. We appreciate the effort expended by each of you in your role on the Board of Education of Rochester Public Schools.
Sincerely,
Community Undersigned (Appearing alphabetically by organization name)
-
Wayne Stenberg, Executive Director
-
Andre Crockett, Host
Bud Whitehorn, Co-Host
-
Bud Whitehorn, Founder
Andre Crockett, Co-Founder
-
Brooke Carlson, Council President
Molly Dennis, Council Member Ward 6
-
Tara Freimund, Executive Director
-
Claudia Tabini, Interim Co-Executive Director
Kelsey Duffy, Interim Co-Executive Director
-
Jamia Erickson, Board President
Amrita Prakaashana, Board Vice President
Erin Blake, Board Treasurer
Al Lun, Board Secretary
Julie Hobbs, Ph.D., Board Member
Mamisoa Knutson, Board Member
Sumedha Penheiter, Ph.D., Board Member
Erin Rahman, Board Member
Dr. Nicole Sandhu, Board Member
Clara Sifuentes, Board Member
George Thompson, Board Member
Dee Sabol, Executive Director
Kylie Bartz, EquityLogic™ and Communications Program Specialist
Catherine Davis, EquityLogic™ Program Director
Camila Hallemeier, Development Manager
Kathy Harowski, Ph.D., Organizational Equity Strategist
Savita Katarya, Sr. Organizational Equity Strategist
Stefanie Meunier, Bookkeeper
Rebecca Minkus, Youth, Family & Community Education Program Specialist
Heidi Wilkins, Youth, Family & Community Education Director
Victoria Ness, Citizen Stakeholder
Dr. Gurpreet Sandhu, Citizen Stakeholder
Amy Hocraffer, Citizen Stakeholder
-
Scott Maloney, Executive Director
-
Jack Dudley, Southern MN Organizer
-
Char Kunkel, Ph.D.
Jyoti Grewal, Ph.D.
Ron Ferguson, Ph.D.
-
Donna Miller, Rochester Local Group Co-Lead
Alisha Eiken, Rochester Local Group Co-Lead
-
Susan Mackert, Executive Director
-
Walé Elegbede, President
William C. Jordan, Jr., Vice President
Rachel Snyder, Treasurer
Barbara Jordan, Secretary
Cleophas Pearson, Assistant Secretary
Kindra Ramaker, Assistant Secretary & Chair Membership Committee
Ray Schmitz, Co-Chair Environmental and Climate Justice Committee
Justin Cook, Co-Chair Education Committee and Criminal Justice Committee
Phil Wheeler, Co-Chair Education Committee
Jennifer Belisle, Chair Economic Development Committee
-
Yasmin Ali, Chief Operating Officer
Mary Villarama, Assistant Operating Officer
Annie Chen, Co-Director of Logistics
Rita Dai, Co-Director of Logistics
Ella Mitchell, Co-Director of Public Relations
Layna Erredge, Co-Director of Public Relations
Jenny Yan, Co-Director of Development
Natasha Sortland, Co-Director of Development
William Laudon, Director of Education
-
Dr. Jeffrey Boyd, President
-
Founders
-
Dr. Lori Carrell, Chancellor
-
Dr. Scott Olson, President
Dr. Jonathan Locust, Associate Vice President
Dr. Jeanine Gangeness, Associate Vice President