Examples
As an active member of the School Improvement Plan committee, specifically the pillar of the SIP responsible for Catholic Community, Culture and Caring, I collaborated with administration, educators and the chaplain as we analyzed data collected from the biannual safe and caring school survey and the yearly compass survey conducted by the University of Waterloo to set goals, inform practice and to evaluate our efforts. View the following examples to see how relationships established with community organizations empowered our students and strengthened our Catholic school culture.
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My involvement with the Board Equity Steering Committee has allowed me to share the resources acquired from each of these organizations with the Superintendent of Equity and Inclusive education in an effort to provide a practical model by which all teachers can incorporate an understanding of the diverse learning needs of all students and to nurture classrooms that ensure equity of opportunity for all students.
Canadian Jesuits International
Y4O Symposium
When Canadian Jesuits International reached out to our school community about facilitating a virtual interactive workshop on COVID Justice as part of their 2-day Youth for Others Symposium, students quickly embraced this leadership opportunity. These students were already very much aware of how the COVID pandemic widened the existing societal fault lines produced by racist policies thus further exposing the racial inequities that have always plagued the members of the BIPOC community. In an act of empowerment, these students decided to transform their awareness into action by integrating technology into every aspect of this workshop which was broadcast live to participants around the world. They used nearpod to create an interactive and engaging workshop that connected them to other inspirational change agents! Click on button below, and then COVID-19 justice, to see a video of the workshop entitled "We are all in the same storm, but not the same boat."
Ifarada - Let's Talk
We have created an amazing partnership over the course of the past 4 years, and they have been most instrumental in the establishment of a more equitable school environment that celebrates diversity. They have facilitated several professional development days and last year, assisted our Unity team to deliver 4 "Let's Talk" zoom seminars where students from the Black community and allies were given a platform to connect and discuss issues such as Black identity, colourism, overcoming self-hate and microagressions. Nicole Perryman, executive director of Ifarada was invited as a guest speaker to each session. After the pandemic restrictions lifted, Ifarada facilitators were able to deliver a 6-week program within the school that sought to help students explore their identity, address/challenge biases/stereotypes, and leadership through social justice. The Ifarada team generously (free of charge!) facilitated the program over the lunch periods, in the chapel at our school, once a week, and all students were invited to join. The IDC4U class at our school also participated in the program for a total of 40 students.
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CCDI - Learning Beyond Limits
Students partnered with the CCDI to provide a data-driven approach to social action. Using the results of the school climate surveys, students were able to diagnose the needs of their community and identify creative responses to that need. The students focussed on dispelling the myths and misunderstandings associated with learning disabilities (LD's). Approximately 20% of St. Mary students (over 300) are diagnosed with an LD, making addressing this issue a very high priority. The goal of the program was to:
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create a climate of acceptance of everyone as they are by avoiding labels and stigmas that are associated with individuals with a LD
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support those with an LD as they utilize the tools and needed to reach their full potential
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encourage compassion and advocacy towards those living with a LD.
After receiving the CCDI "See Different" training, and in conjunction and consultation with administration, guidance, school social worker and program support staff, students leaders created their own seminars designed to bring awareness to this issue and presented their information throughout the school in individual classrooms. These interactive seminars brought the language of fairness and equity to the students, ensuring accessibility and understanding of these important concepts.
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Results of See Different program: Learning Beyond Limits...
According to the 2014 Biannual Safe and Caring Schools survey, 60.5% of the school population felt as though grades were a barrier to their learning, evidenced as a fixed mindset approach to their development. The shift from a "fixed mindset" to a "growth mindset" was perhaps one of the greatest accomplishments of the see differently program. As a result of these workshops and an increase in the availability of tools and strategies made accessible to students, there was a marked increase in the sense of positivity and solidarity amongst students. This was made evident in the 2016 survey results which displayed a dramatic decline in the percentage of students who felt their grades to be an insurmountable obstacle to their learning - from 60.5% to 24% - a decline of 36.5%. This is hugely satisfying and definitely is a sign that community partnerships are key when striving to make positive strides in the promotion of the importance of a growth mindset when it comes to student success.
Harmony Movement - The Power of Words
When junior students expressed concerns over the increasing levels of discrimination and racism in our school, the services of the organization Harmony Movement were employed. They delivered a program entitled "Race and Racism - Igniting Student Voice" which empowered 30 racialized students to advocate for social change in the context of race and racism. These students formed an advocacy group, Unity, as well as developed an educational workshop which taught the value of embracing and respecting differences. The workshop was delivered to all grade 9 and 10 students within the school and to grade 6 and 7 students from five local elementary schools. In the workshop, students critically explored the concept of privilege and allyship while sharing and respecting lived experiences, de-constructing discrimination, and building skills for transformative conversations.
Unity group members collected pre- and post-workshop data regarding the effectiveness of their presentation, and the results are as follows: students who strongly agreed that they knew how to intervene when confronting someone engaged in discriminatory behavior increased from 14% to 40%; students who strongly agreed that they understood how bias and stereotypes affected the way they interacted with diverse individuals increased from 36% to 53%; and, lastly, students who strongly agreed that they could effectively identify their own implicit biases and stereotypes increased from 22% to 38%.
