EQUITY SUPPORT

Experiential Professional Development/Capacity Building

Our experiential trainings will assist educators in having truthful conversations around equity and give them confidence and support to address educational inequities. Our ultimate goal is to assist educators to create an environment where every student has access and opportunity to the most equitable education possible.

Systems/Sustainability

CLS helps districts develop systems that serve the entire community, specifically focusing on traditionally marginalized populations (i.e., ability, race, gender, LGBTQ). The services we offer support schools and districts to engage in structural changes to minimize the marginalization of students within their system. Using the science of change theory, we help districts create change in mindset, behavior, thinking, and philosophy for the adults in the system.

SERVICES AVAILABLE

Experiential Professional Development/ Capacity Building

Implicit Bias Training/ Equity Mindsets (in-person | 1 day)

Through our experiential workshop, participants will gain an understanding of implicit bias as well as oppression and microaggressions. They will learn about the impact of implicit bias on students, staff, and school communities, expanding their awareness of unintentional biases that continue to impact school climate and culture. Participants will also have the opportunity to practice interrupting bias through the use of alternative practices, strategies, and tools.

Educational Equity Training (virtual | six (6) 2-hour sessions)

Participants engage in reflection around equity and form a personal and shared definition of educational equity. They also consider how the ideology of “deficit thinking” impacts the way we react to the abilities and behaviors of groups such as low-income, special education status, and racial/ethnic minority students. Lastly, participants examine poverty disciplining as an ideology and explore how their personal experiences may affect their current interactions with individuals of different races and ethnicities.

Equity Communities of Practice (in-person and virtual | time varies)

Our Equity Communities of Practice (ECoP) framework focuses on identifying inequities in the educational system to ensure the highest outcomes for ALL students. Using data and exploration, affinity groups of educational partners (students, staff, or parents) address educational inequities through a cycle of inquiry and make recommendations to their district/school leadership. Learn more here.

Systems/ Sustainability

Equity Audit (in-person/ virtual | 5 days)

Through an analysis of their current structures, such as policies, procedures, resources, interventions, and professional development, we partner with school sites and districts to provide recommendations, ensuring equitable outcomes. Upon completion, a comprehensive written report of strengths, challenges, and recommendations will be provided.

Equity Coaching/Consultation (in-person/ virtual | time varies)

Using current methodology and the results of the Equity Audit, our coaching and consultation model aims to assist school sites and districts with the implementation of the recommendations provided by the audit. We also help define the next steps to reduce the over-identification in special education and marginalization of people based on a specific social group (ability level, race, gender, LGBTQIA+ status, socio-economic status, etc.).

Responsive Discipline Guidelines (in-person/ virtual | time varies)

We sit side by side with site teams and district leaders to recognize punitive practices and their relationship to the improvement of staff and student behavior. This specific work helps districts transform their current traditional system of punitive practices into a more restorative one, where the repair of harm is the main focus. (Note that our Restorative Practices Experience training should either be done prior to or simultaneously with this work.) Learn more here.