January-February 2019 Board to Board Newsletter

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board to board News from the Board of NWESD

A Note From Our Superintendent Last year, the Northwest Educational Service District staff began a collective journey around the topic of racial equity. Our learning and growth has been nurtured and sustained by deeply committed and immensely talented NWESD staff who have bravely embraced the leadership of our racial equity work. The NWESD mission – Together We Can…promote excellence and equity through leadership and service – calls out the promotion of equity as central to our purpose and existence. And while equity encompasses many dimensions – gender, ability, income level, primary language – our focus on the particular dimension of racial equity is intentionally chosen. Growing racial diversity across our region is undeniable. In 2005-06, 24% of the students served in public schools across the NWESD region were students of color. By 2011-12, students of color made up over 33% of the NWESD region. Last year, 40% of the NWESD region identified as students of color. We also know that students of color can lag far behind their white student peers across a wide range of academic and non-academic measures. Whether one looks at performance on state assessments, participation in advanced coursework, graduation rates, chronic absenteeism, suspension rates, or a wide range of other indicators, students of color in the NWESD region – particularly Latino, African American, and Native American students – perform behind, and often well behind, their white counterparts. The reasons for these differences are incredibly complex and extend far beyond the walls of the schools and the influences of local communities. A combination of individual, systemic, and institutional barriers continue to impact people of color across the NWESD region, our state, and our nation. As the institutions charged with safeguarding our American democracy and promoting our national ideals, those of us in public education must accept our role and responsibility in disrupting and surmounting these persistent disparities. Like most school districts, the racial composition of the NWESD staff does not come close to mirroring that of the nearly 170,000 students of the NWESD region. As an overwhelmingly white staff, our collective life experiences and perspectives provide limited insight into students and families of color in today’s world. Operating from the premise that you can’t lead what you don’t know, we believe that each of us at the NWESD should commit to a personal and collective journey to better understand and appreciate how opportunity, access, and expectation can differ for people of color, in both visible and invisible ways, and how those differences shape disparate outcomes such as those noted above. It is through this greater understanding and awareness that we can better act and respond intentionally to help eliminate the most destructive barriers that exist. Race remains a decidedly difficult and challenging topic, particularly given our nation’s history of slavery, Jim Crow laws, and civil rights struggles that continue to this day. But to truly realize our mission to promote excellence and equity through leadership and service, we must accept the challenge of growing a stronger racial equity lens individually and collectively to inform our work on behalf of the students, educators, and families we support. The difficulty of confronting racial equity is precisely the reason we must. Perhaps our most powerful learning to date has been the realization of the complexity and depth of the many facets of racial equity. No single training, book, podcast, or facilitated conversation enables one to check the racial equity box and move on to other topics. It is the acceptance of non-closure, the recognition of personal discomfort, and appreciation for the incremental gains in our knowledge, awareness, skills, and advocacy that move us toward our mission of equity and excellence for all students.

Larry Francois

NWESD Superintendent

January-February 2019


Upcoming Events

School Safety Conference January 16-17, 2019 A safe school environment is critical to student learning. The NWESD’s two-day School Safety Summit will provide impactful content related to violence prevention, reducing risk, and fostering engagement on school campuses. With an impressive lineup of keynote speakers and breakout presenters, attendees will be able to pick and choose sessions to participate in such as Active Shooter and Disaster Preparedness tabletops, Reunification, Suicide Postvention, Restorative Justice, Compassion Fatigue and much more.

Early Learning P-3 Summit February 6, 2019 On February 6th, the NWESD will invite early learning leadership teams from across the region to participate in the second annual Early Learning Summit. This year, we will be joined by the Educational Research and Data Center (ERDC) and Mari Taylor from the National P-3 Center.

OSPI & WASA Visit Anacortes

Administrative Professionals Conference April 24, 2019 A one-day conference designed for administrative assistants in school district offices, school buildings and other educational settings will be held in April. This is a great opportunity for administrative assistants to nurture their skills and to learn, grow and share with other great professionals. We welcome motivational humorist and keynote speaker Sharon Lacey who will inspire participants to turn challenges into opportunities.

Pictured from left to right: Dr. Randy Russell, Freeman School District Superintendent & 2018-19 WASA President; Dan Steele, WASA Assistant Executive Director, Government Relations; Chris Reykdal, State Superintendent of Public Instruction; Larry Francois, NWESD Superintendent; Joel Aune, WASA Executive Director

On November 2, 2018, the NWESD Superintendent Advisory Committee was honored to welcome Superintendent of Public Instruction (SPI), Chris Reykdal, and 2018-19 Washington Association of School Administrators (WASA) President, Dr. Randy Russell, to its November 2nd meeting. Dr. Russell thanked superintendents for their leadership on behalf of the students, staff, families, and communities they serve. As those on the front lines of district leadership, Dr. Russell also encouraged superintendents to make their voice heard by legislators and policymakers during the upcoming legislative session. SPI Reykdal shared his legislative priorities and insights into the opportunities, challenges, and unfinished work following the recently concluded McCleary basic education funding lawsuit.


2019 marks the 50th anniversary of Educational Service Districts in Washington State. Supporting schools and communities since 1969

Celebrating the 20th anniversary of the School Nurse Corps, school nurses, and this important milestone in student and school health!

The NWESD School Improvement Team The NWESD School Improvement Team (SIT) offers customized supports in the following areas for schools to effectively transform practice: • • • •

Equity Needs Assessment Data Analysis/Goal Setting School Improvement Action Planning • Effective Professional Learning Communities

• Instructional Coaching: English Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, English Learners, Students with Disabilities • Executive Team Coaching • Learning Focused Conversations • Early Warning Systems • Graduation and Attendance Support

Gayle Everly

School Improvement Administrator

geverly@nwesd.org | 360-299-4082 Joanne Johnson

Data & Equity Coordinator

jjohnson@nwesd.org | 360-299-4046 Libby Tillotson

School Improvement Coordinator

ltillotson@nwesd.org | 360-299-4052 Pam Estvold

NWESD Teaching & Learning Superintendent and School Improvement Champion pestvold@nwesd.org | 360-299-4036

Lara Cole, Ph.D.

School Improvement & Students with Disabilities Specialist

lcole@nwesd.org | 360-299-4012 Kristine Juhl

Administrative Assistant

kjuhl@nwesd.org | 360-299-4030 Steve Wharton School Improvement Data Consultant

stevewhartonconsulting@gmail.com 425-877-8064

www.nwesd.org/improvement


Charles Crabtree, District 1 Bellingham, Meridian

Dr. Jack Thompson, District 2 Blaine, Ferndale, Lopez Island, Lynden, Mount Baker, Nooksack Valley, Orcas Island, San Juan Island, Shaw Island Mark Venn, District 3 Anacortes, Burlington-Edison, Concrete, Conway, Darrington, La Conner, Mount Vernon, Sedro-Woolley Claudia Talmadge, District 4

Educational Service Districts have served Washington State for almost fifty years, providing vital services and functioning as advocates for local districts. Northwest Educational Service District 189 (NWESD) serves Whatcom, Skagit, Snohomish, Island, and San Juan counties. NWESD’s more than fifty programs are organized into seven departments to serve you: Administration, Early Learning, Fiscal Services, Prevention Center, Special Programs and Services, Teaching and Learning, and Technology Services. Please visit us on our website at nwesd.org for more information on each of these departments.

Coupeville, Lakewood, Mukilteo, Oak Harbor, South Whidbey, Stanwood-Camano Dr. Alan Erickson, District 5

Stay in touch

Everett

Cory Duskin, District 6 Arlington, Granite Falls, Index, Marysville, Sultan Claudia Buxton, District 7 Edmonds, Mukilteo

Gordon W. Griggs, District 8 Edmonds, Mukilteo

Merle Kirkley, District 9 Lake Stevens, Monroe, Snohomish View our latest print publications online:

www.nwesd.org/communications or to request a printed copy email: communications@nwesd.org


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