Creating a District Plan to Increase the Racial, Ethnic and Linguistic Diversity of Your Educator Workforce
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Part 1: A Guidebook for Hiring and Selection 1 Creating a District Plan to Increase the Racial, Ethnic and Linguistic Diversity of Your Educator Workforce A Guidebook for Hiring and Selection The Connecticut State Department of Education is committed to a policy of affirmative action/equal opportunity for all qualified persons. The Connecticut State Department of Education does not discriminate in any employment practice, education program, or educational activity on the basis of age, ancestry, color, criminal record (in state employment and licensing), gender identity or expression, genetic information, intellectual disability, marital status, mental disability (past or present), national origin, physical disability (including blindness), race, religious creed, retaliation for previously opposed discrimination or coercion, sex (pregnancy or sexual harassment), sexual orientation, veteran status or workplace hazards to reproductive systems, unless there is a bona fide occupational qualification excluding persons in any of the aforementioned protected classes. Inquiries regarding the Connecticut State Department of Education’s nondiscrimination policies should be directed to Levy Gillespie, Equal Employment Opportunity Director/Americans with Disabilities Coordinator (ADA), Connecticut State Department of Education, 450 Columbus Boulevard, Suite 607, Hartford, CT 06103, 860-807-2071, [email protected] The contents of this guidebook were developed, in part, under a grant from the Department of Education. The contents do not necessarily represent the policy of the Department of Education or endorsement by the federal government. Creating a District Plan to Increase the Racial, Ethnic and Linguistic Diversity of Your Educator Workforce: A Guidebook for Hiring and Selection Creating a District Plan to Increase the Racial, Ethnic and Linguistic Diversity of Your Educator Workforce iii Contributors Connecticut State Department Northeast Comprehensive Center of Education Kathy Dunne Dianna R. Wentzell, EdD Director, Professional Development, Commissioner of Education WestEd’s Learning Innovations Program Sarah Barzee, PhD Carol Keirstead, EdD Chief Talent Officer Senior Research Associate, RMC Research Corporation Christopher Todd Bureau Chief, Talent Office Susan Villani, EdD Senior Program Research Associate Kim Wachtelhausen WestEd’s Learning Innovations Program Education Consultant, Strategy Lead Center for Great Teachers Lisa Cushing and Leaders Teacher Leader in Residence Deanna Hill, JD, PhD Kimberly Audet, EdD Principal Technical Assistance Consultant, Education Consultant American Institutes for Research Amber Moye Tammie Causey-Konaté, PhD Leading for Equity and Excellence Fellow Principal Technical Assistance Consultant, American Institutes for Research Matthew Falconer Editor Andrea Wadowski Graphic Designer This resource was informed by a collaborative effort among the Connecticut State Department of Education (CSDE), the Center on Great Teachers and Leaders (GTL), and the Northeast Comprehensive Center (NCC) who together created and facilitated a four-part professional learning series: Examining Unconscious Bias in the Hiring and Selection Process. We thank our Connecticut public school district teams and other education partners who participated in the four-part series and gained a greater understanding of implicit bias and its influence on talent management policies and practices: Bridgeport, Hartford, Meriden, New Britain, New Haven, New London, Norwich, and Waterbury public school districts, AFT, CABE, CAPSS, CAS, CEA, CCSU, Sacred Heart University, UConn, and WCSU. Their contributions to this guidebook are deeply appreciated. iv Creating a District Plan to Increase the Racial, Ethnic and Linguistic Diversity of Your Educator Workforce Creating a District Plan to Increase the Racial, Ethnic and Linguistic Diversity of Your Educator Workforce v Contents Part 1: Creating a District Plan to Increase the Racial, Ethnic and Linguistic Diversity of Your Educator Workforce: A Guidebook for Hiring and Selection A. Introduction • Call to Action • Background • About the Guidebook B. Critical Underpinnings • The Language of This Work • Understanding Unconscious Bias and Privilege • Developing a Theory of Action C. Making It Happen • Using the Guidebook • Guidance, processes, tools, and resources for each of the following: * Analyzing data, assessing district systems and practices to identify assets and needs * Reviewing evidence-based policies, programs, and practices to select strategies best suited to addressing needs * Developing action plans to implement strategies while meeting requirements of P.A. 18-34 (An Act Concerning Minority Teacher Recruitment and Retention) * Implementing the plan and monitoring progress D. Appendixes 1. Selecting and Hiring a Diverse Educator Workforce: At-A-Glance 2. District Demographic Profile 3. Mapping District Hiring Processes 4. Data Inquiry Tool 5. Recruitment, Hiring, and Selection to Increase Workforce Diversity: Self-Assessment Tool (adapted version) 6. Getting the Problem Right: “Five Whys” Root Cause Analysis 7. Putting It All Together: Aligning Philosophy, Policies, Structures, and Practices 8. Action Planning Template 9. Monitoring Progress vi Creating a District Plan to Increase the Racial, Ethnic and Linguistic Diversity of Your Educator Workforce Part 2: The Brookside Story: A Process Scenario A. This scenario is designed to illustrate what district and school leaders in a fictitious district are thinking and doing to address the goal of a building a more diverse teacher and administrator workforce. It is provided to serve as a learning case study through which participants can make connections to their experience and how they think proactively about addressing potential barriers or challenges in this current endeavor. It describes how a multi-constituent team might use the guidebook and the resources in the appendixes to set a course and address hiring in their district, including an action plan. B. The rooksideB Story: A Jig-saw Process This case study is a two-part activity with facilitator notes to engage hiring and selection teams in reading and reflecting upon the scenario and related key questions. Part 3: Culturally Responsive Hiring Strategies Guidance Resource: A Companion to the Culturally Responsive Hiring Self-Assessment Tool This valuable resource is organized according to six key programmatic domains: (1) Organizational Culture, (2) Talent Needs, (3) Attracting a Diverse Workforce, (4) Selecting and Hiring, (5) Supporting and Developing, and (6) Retaining and Extending. The tool integrates evidence gleaned from systematic research and practice-based evidence and details recommended strategies for informing culturally responsive hiring practices, together with a compilation of pertinent literature and resource materials. Our Promise to Connecticut’s Students All students deserve great teachers and leaders. • We will work to build an educator workforce that reflects the diversity of our state. • We will attract and retain effective teachers and school and district leaders of color, and offer challenging, rewarding, and enriching experiences at every stage of a teacher’s and administrator’s career. • We will support culturally responsive educational practices that help all students engage in meaningful learning. “Great teachers and leaders collectively reflect the rich cultural diversity in Connecticut and are culturally responsive instructors.” Ensuring Equity and Excellence for All Connecticut Students: The Connecticut State Board of Education’s Five-year Comprehensive Plan, 2016–21 viii Creating a District Plan to Increase the Racial, Ethnic and Linguistic Diversity of Your Educator Workforce Increasing the Racial, Ethnic and Linguistic Diversity of the Connecticut Educator Workforce: Starting with the End in Mind The commitment to increasing the racial, ethnic, and linguistic diversity of Connecticut’s educator workforce is imperative. All students benefit from the talents of teachers from a variety of different backgrounds, races, and ethnic groups who have high expectations of them, treat them humanely and equitably, are culturally respon- sive, and are willing and able to view students and families as assets. Additionally, students of color benefit from having teachers from their own racial and ethnic group who can serve as successful role models, have the potential to possess a greater knowledge of their heritage and culture, and who tend to have higher academic expectations of them (Warner and Duncan, 2019). Yet, the diversity gap between teachers and students contin- ues to exist. As we strive to close achievement gaps for students of color, ensuring access to effective teachers who reflect the diversity of our PK–12 students is a problem that we can and must solve—and solve together. The continuum of educator talent development encompasses how educators are recruited, prepared, select- ed, hired, developed, supported and retained. All of the points along this continuum require thoughtful in- tention and attention. This guide serves to support the hiring and selection practices along that continuum. All Connecticut school districts are required to comply with PA 18-34 (An Act Concerning Minority Teach- er Recruitment and Retention) by developing and implementing a Minority Teacher Recruitment (MTR) plan. The development of these plans is a critical start, though not enough to achieve the changes we seek. It will also require new mindsets, skill