Gwinnett County Public Schools’ (GCPS) Office of Equity and Compliance kicks off its GCPS Talks Educational Equity series this week. Citizens are invited to tune into the series to learn about educational equity in GCPS and to share their ideas and suggestions regarding educational equity in local schools. In addition to shows geared toward the general community, the series will include a session for students.
The GCPS Talk Educational Equity series will be available via the GCPS TV app, on the school district’s webpage, and via your cable TV provider. This first show airs Nov. 9 at 6 p.m., then re-airs several times each day (8 a.m., 10 a.m., 2 p.m., 6 p.m., and 8 p.m.) from Nov. 10 to Nov. 15 on GCPS TV.
The first session in the series will provide an overview of the work that has been done to date by six equity teams made up of more than 100 district and local school staff members. Additional sessions will explore these equity focus areas in more detail. Host George Franco and Dr. Tommy Welch, GCPS chief equity and compliance officer, will lead the community through the following sessions:
Nov. 9 Session 1: Educational Equity Overview (Pre-recorded)
Nov. 16 Session 2: Student Meeting (Live)
Special Guest Laura Ross, Five Forks Middle School counselor, 2020 National Counselor of the Year
Nov. 30 Session 3: Equity Teams Overview (Pre-recorded)
Dec. 7 Session 4: Community meeting (Live)
Special Guest Nury Crawford, director of Community-Based Mentoring
Jan. 11 Session 5: Educational Equity Summary (Live)
During each live session, the audience will have access to an interactive tool to ask questions and provide feedback. This feedback will be combined with responses to an online community survey to help direct future work in the area of educational equity. Information about the survey will be provided during the live broadcast on Nov. 16, shared with GCPS families and the community on the district website, and shared with teachers and staff through district communication channels.
Dr. Welch says he looks forward to engaging with students and community members during these sessions. “We want to hear from our constituents with any questions or insight they can share with us, based on their experiences,” he says.
“As a district, we are committed to addressing and reducing educational inequities that exist and to providing students and staff with programs and support that increase opportunities for success,” he adds. “The feedback we receive during the live GCPS Talk sessions and via our online survey will be very helpful as we continue our work in this critical area of educational equity.”
More about the Six Educational Equity Teams in GCPS
Gwinnett County Public Schools has identified six Educational Equity areas in which its current work is focused. Those areas are:
Educational Opportunities and Expectations;
Teaching and Learning;
Student Support;
Community Engagement and Partnerships;
Facilities and Assets; and
Human Resources, Leadership, and Staff.
The teams—one for each area—have met weekly for the past nine weeks to review current procedures, with an eye toward equity, and propose improvements to support educational equity as well as recommend new procedures for consideration. The teams analyzed and provided suggestions to improve the structures, systems, and support needed to promote educational equity throughout the district.
Dr. Welch notes that engaging others and gathering input on the work is a key to the equity team process. “The GCPS Talks Educational Equity series, along with the online survey, are two key ways the district is collecting feedback on this important district initiative,” he says.