written by David Núñez, Interim Head of School
Dear GRS community,
As I am sure you are all aware, February is Black History Month!
What you may not know about is the work going on at Great River around equity and inclusion and some of the resources we use. Like our entire community, our school is a place that is fraught with all the real challenges of racial justice in our time and place, here in the United States in 2023. We know, as educators, that this fight is the work that is set before us, one of the most, if not the most important educational issue of our time.
Of course, here at Great River, we also believe that we should be celebrating and uplifting all identities throughout the year. But in the case of Black History Month, Women’s History Month, Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, and other such celebratory events on our calendar it's a great time to sharpen our focus and these events are a great opportunity to have some very real conversations.
One of the current projects at Great River is the creation of an Equity Action Plan. We’ve spent the last few months examining the results of last year’s equity audit and a team of educators and parents have been working with Equity Alliance MN to create an action plan for the school. This plan is intended to drive forward concrete action in our community and also to be the cornerstone of our new 5-year Strategic Plan.
Also this year we have revamped the Student Wellness and Equity role at Great River to be our Equity and Inclusion Facilitator, a full member of our Leadership Team. If you haven’t had the chance to meet or talk to Jordan Samejima, feel free to reach out to him.
A couple key reminders around Black History Month I share every year with the staff I work with are:
This month is about celebrating and taking pride in the contributions of Black people, they should not use this month as the one time of year to bring up slavery, segregation and oppression.
They should not only teach about MLK, Rosa Parks, and other heroes the students have heard about again and again, if this is what the staff know about Black History they should be actively broadening their knowledge.
Staff should be teaching Black History with a lens on intersectional black identities.
Here at Great River we have a collection of resources that faculty use and share and Jordan and I will be sending weekly communications to staff this month with reminders and further resources. Here are a few of the materials and articles we’ve compiled as a community, if you’re interested:
What is Black History? (Elementary) and Black History is American History (Adolescent)
Black Lives Matter At School is a national movement organizing for racial justice in education. We encourage all educators, students, parents, unions, and community organizations to join our annual week of action during the first week of February each year. To learn more about how to get involved, check out our BLM at School Starter Kit.
CNN’s article on Trauma-Free Blackness
An EdWeek Opinion article I shared last year with staff: "How can white teachers teach Black history?"
Being culturally competent and equity-minded is good, but being anti-racist and combating anti-Blackness is something else entirely. This article about anti-Blackness explains.
I am truly looking forward to celebrating this month with you and our entire GRS community.
If you have any questions, concerns, ideas to add to our staff resource list, or comments, please let me know!
“The histories, stories, and voices of Black people should be centered, honored, and uplifted in school curricula every day. Today, we still see the absence of Black history and experience in most textbooks, required readings, STEM, and overall curriculum of our educational system.
Unless Black history is taught throughout the year, it perpetuates an “othering” of Black Lives and Black students, and is also a manifestation of anti-Blackness. Ensuring the ongoing integration of Black history and experiences throughout all curriculum is imperative as educators continue to uplift every student and reinforce that Black Lives Matter every day.”
Source: https://centerracialjustice.org
Peace,
David