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Racial Justice in Education Resource Guide RACIAL JUSTICE IN EDUCATION RESOURCE GUIDE • WHY RACIAL EQUITY & JUSTICE? • TALKING RACE • TOOLS FOR ASSESSMENT, STRATEGIC PLANNING AND ACTION Racial Justice in Education - Resource Guide 2 WHAT IS RACIAL JUSTICE? Racial justice is the systematic fair treatment of people of all races, resulting in equitable opportunities and outcomes for all. Racial justice — or racial equity — goes beyond “anti-racism.” It is not just the absence of discrimination and inequities, but also the presence of deliberate systems and supports to achieve and sustain racial equity through proactive and preventative measures. 3 Racial Justice in Education - Resource Guide ABOUT THIS RESOURCE AND HOW TO USE IT WHY RACIAL EQUITY & JUSTICE? ■ Racial Equity/Justice and our Mission, Vision, Core Values 5 and Strategic Framework ■ Guiding Principles & Analysis Questions 8 TALKING RACE ■ Creating the Space to Talk About Race in Your Classroom 12 ■ Seven Harmful Racial Discourse Practices to Avoid 21 ■ Key Terms & Glossary 31 ■ FAQ’s 37 TOOLS FOR ASSESSMENT, STRATEGIC PLANNING & ACTION ■ Race Equity Impact Assessments 42 ■ Standards of Review; Content and Grants 45 ■ Action Planning Guidance 49 ■ Action Plan Template 80 Racial Justice in Education - Resource Guide 4 WHY RACIAL EQUITY & JUSTICE? • Racial Equity/Justice and our Mission, Vision, Core Values and Strategic Framework • Guiding Principles & Analysis Questions 5 Racial Justice in Education - Resource Guide RACIAL EQUITY/JUSTICE AND OUR MISSION, VISION, CORE VALUES AND STRATEGIC FRAMEWORK To better align and MISSION Our mission is to advocate for education institutionalize racial professionals and unite our members equity into the work and the nation to fulfill the promise of and practices of NEA, public education, to break down the barriers to racial equity, and to prepare it is important that we every student to succeed in a diverse understand the and interdependent world. connection of racial VISION justice to our mission, Our vision is a great public school for vision, core values and every student. strategic framework. Racial Justice in Education - Resource Guide 6 CORE VALUES These principles guide our work and define our mission: ■ Equal Opportunity. We believe public education is the gateway to opportunity. All students have the human and civil right to a quality public education that de- velops their potential, independence, and character. ■ A Just Society. We believe public education is vital to building respect for the worth, dignity, and equality of every individual in our diverse society. ■ Democracy. We believe public education is the cornerstone of our republic. Public education provides individuals with the skills to be involved, informed, and engaged in our representative democracy. ■ Professionalism. We believe that the expertise and judgment of education pro- fessionals are critical to student success. We maintain the highest professional standards, and we expect the status, compensation, and respect due all profes- sionals. ■ Partnership. We believe partnerships with parents, families, communities, and other stakeholders are essential to quality public education and student success. ■ Collective Action. We believe individuals are strengthened when they work to- gether for the common good. As education professionals, we improve both our professional status and the quality of public education when we unite and advo- cate collectively. NEA also believes every student in America, regardless of family income or place of residence, deserves a quality education. In pursuing its mission, NEA has deter- mined that we will focus the energy and resources of our 3.2 million members on improving the quality of teaching, increasing student achievement and making schools safer, better places to learn. 7 Racial Justice in Education - Resource Guide STRATEGIC FRAMEWORK Our organizational work to advance racial justice in education is driven by the following strategic framework: Awareness The objective is to build racial equity awareness and analytical capacity across our association, fostering an understanding of key concepts, such as institutional and systemic racism, implicit bias, racial equity and multiracial systemic solutions. Shared knowledge and conceptual clarity helps normalize explicit and constructive conversations about race. Capacity Building The objective is to equip members, leaders, staff and partners with the skills, tools, strategies, resources and relationships to be effective leaders and advocates in the fight for racial justice in education. Action The objective is to engage and activate members, leaders and stakeholders in on- the-ground efforts to combat institutional racism and advance racial justice. Some actions are external — organizing to advance changes in our schools and communi- ties — while others are internal — implementing equitable practices that change the association’s work. Racial Justice in Education - Resource Guide 8 GUIDING PRINCIPLES & ANALYSIS QUESTIONS BACKGROUND Combating institutional racism and advancing racial justice in education and beyond is at the forefront of the NEA’s vision to provide a great public school for every student. At the 2015 Representative Assembly, NEA adopted NBI-B, which recognized the role that institutional racism plays in our society, including in our schools. NBI-B directed NEA to spotlight patterns of systemic racism and educational injustice that impact students, and to take action to enhance access and opportunity for all students to have a great education. We will take action by de- manding changes to policies, programs, and practices that condone or ignore unequal treatment of students and hinder their success. NEA’s Center for Social Justice and the Human and Civil Rights Department will continue to provide guidance on this issue, and continue to support efforts to build awareness and capacity, and take strategic action to disrupt and eventually eradicate these systems of oppres- sion in our schools and beyond. 9 Racial Justice in Education - Resource Guide GUIDING PRINCIPLES ON RACIAL & SOCIAL JUSTICE IN EDUCATION ■ Our work promotes a vision for public education that advances inclusion, equity, and racial and social justice in our schools and society. ■ Our work must dismantle white supremacy, and ensure that bigotry or discrim- ination based on gender, sexual orientation, disability or national origin are not part of our classrooms, educational curricula, school policies and discipline prac- tices. ■ Our schools must be safe for all students, and free from state-sanctioned, racial- ized, and gender-based violence. ■ We must work to dismantle discipline systems that create the school-to-prison pipeline by implementing practices that encourage inclusion and are free from racial and ethnic bias, and invest in counselors and other student supports. ■ Our work must result in action - programs, campaigns, policies, and capaci- ty-building efforts for local NEA members that dismantle institutional racism now and into the future. Initiatives should create sustainable infrastructures that can continue to create systemic change, and hold decision-makers, elected offi- cials, and institutions accountable. ■ Our work must recruit, engage, and promote leadership of educators of color to share the ladder of opportunity. ■ Programs, campaigns, and projects must be driven by goals that are clearly out- lined, tracked, and measured, and that have accountability systems that explicitly promote racial justice. ■ Our work must promote education policies and curricula which highlight and honor the histories and cultures of people of color and indigenous peoples. ■ We must work to ensure that all students have access to a safe and quality edu- cation, regardless of their country of origin or immigration status. ■ Our work must promote and support the engagement of students of color and LGBTQ students in shaping policies that directly impact their educational experi- ences and foster safe and inclusive schools. Racial Justice in Education - Resource Guide 10 ANALYSIS QUESTIONS TO SUPPORT THE ASSESSMENT OF RACIAL IMPACT 1. Does this work explicitly address racial inequities and impacts? Do materials, communications and work products from this work explicity address racial ineq- uities and impacts? 2. Who benefits from this work? 3. How many students or educators of color are positively impacted by this work? 4. Is there a racial justice disparity that is being addressed? Are conditions being improved? 5. Is the racial equity practice being introduced? Can this practice be systematized? 6. Does this work build NEA’s Racial Justice muscle? 7. Does this work explicitly foster pathways for educators of color to play leadership roles in the work and in our association? 8. How does this work impact the identification, recruitment, engagement, and de- velopment of new and current members, activists and/or leaders of color? 11 Racial Justice in Education - Resource Guide TALKING RACE • Creating the Space to Talk About Race in Your School • Seven Harmful Racial Discourse Practices to Avoid • Recommendations and Conclusions • Key Terms & Glossary • FAQ’s Racial Justice in Education - Resource Guide 12 CREATING THE SPACE TO TALK ABOUT RACE IN YOUR SCHOOL Racial dynamics, disparities and divisions permeate our society, communities, schools and classrooms. Systemic racism is so deeply rooted in our history, culture and institutions that there’s no escaping it. Visible or not, its impacts are ever-present. Yet, discussions of racism are typically
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