Districts To Conduct Survey To Receive Community Input
WRENTHAM — Superintendents Paul Zinni, David Raiche, Allan Cameron and Ingrid Allardi are pleased to announce that the King Philip, Plainville, Norfolk and Wrentham school districts will be hiring a Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion to serve all schools.
This newly created position will lead the King Philip Regional, Norfolk, Wrentham and Plainville Schools’ efforts to build organizations based on equity, inclusion and belonging for all students, their families, staff and community members. The creation of this new position was made possible due to the continued efforts of the districts’ Equity Committee, which has worked since the summer of 2019 to address diversity and equity issues in all communities.
In this position, the Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion will seek to create alignment and continuity between districts as they pursue the goal of creating more equitable, just and inclusive learning environments. The director will report directly to the four district superintendents and will be a part of the regional administrative leadership team.
To view additional information about the position’s day-to-day responsibilities and the qualifications the ideal candidate possesses, click here.
Due to budget constraints brought upon the districts as a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the position will be funded through a Wellness grant that King Philip, Plainville, Norfolk and Wrentham schools received from the state.
“We recognize that existing systems disproportionately impact the most marginalized communities in our society, which directly impacts the wellness of our students,” Superintendent Zinni said. “Without addressing these issues, we are not fully taking into account our students’ entire wellbeing since marginalization and equity issues have wellness factors tied into them. With the use of our Wellness grant to fund this position, we are continuing to address systemic issues that hinder our students while continuing to promote their mental health and wellbeing.”
To ensure that the districts are addressing all the needs of their community members, the four districts will be releasing a survey for community members to fill out. School officials would like community members to use this survey as an opportunity to voice their ideas or any concerns they may have.
The survey will be released in the coming weeks and school officials urge students, parents and other community members to fill it out. All survey results will be reviewed and used to guide future conversations and initiatives, as well as be used in the hiring process for the Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion position.
OUR COMMITMENT TO DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION:
The Norfolk, Wrentham, Plainville and King Philip Regional Schools believe that all children are capable of learning and achieving at a high level, but recognize that there are systemic and implicit biases/barriers that impact their ability to achieve equitable outcomes. We also believe that every child has inherent value and that schools should nurture their sense of self-worth. We believe that diversity makes us stronger. As a result, we are committed to creating a learning community where students, families and staff feel a sense of belonging, have a voice that is heard and can see themselves represented throughout the school community and the curriculum.
We believe that educators have the power to influence change. We understand that in a homogeneous community that is predominantly white, we have a heightened responsibility to act with intention to promote social justice. We realize that the path towards equity is a journey that requires on-going commitment and continuous learning. We are committed to doing the work together.
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