Initiative fatigue is real and understandable. Yet everything, from the biggest state or district initiative down to individual lesson planning, should be viewed through the lens of equity, rather than viewing equity as the initiative itself — every decision from the district level, down to day-to-day classroom instructional decisions, should be made through an equity lens.

Equity is not another thing on the plate, it IS the plate.

This work begins at my school as it often does — by offering a survey to staff about where we should focus our work, as we are outraged and empowered to respond to current events around Black Lives Matter. The feedback is genuinely helpful, productive, thoughtful, and actionable. The following are not direct quotes, but a collection of themes from across all feedback. Yet so many of the actions are contradictory:

“We should do a book study on ________ text.”

“We should stop book studies, because they are philosophical in nature, and we need action.” “Let’s better utilize student voice in creating materials in celebration of different cultural heritage months.”

“Cultural heritage months are reductive, and limit celebrations of culture to only one month per year.”

“The problem is systemic racism, and we can’t actually take meaningful action until society deals with its ills. Issues like underrepresentation of People of Color in the teaching profession need to be addressed before we can do anything else.”

“Especially now, we need to be brave enough to make racial equity our focus, rather than discussing other issues like gender equality and LGBTQ+ inclusion.”

“We need to be intersectional in our understanding of race and other minoritized groups.”

The benefits of a thoughtful and dedicated school staff are that great ideas sometimes conflict, and there is no correct way to resolve the conflicts without leaning into the discomfort and imperfection of the work.

My favorite folks in this work share that equity is not a project or an initiative but rather a lens through which to view everything. Our work is to see equity as an embedded personality trait of staff and students. An authentic move should not end with a one-time event or an article to read; it should only start there. Take these examples of activities that spark ongoing conversation and sharing:

This is not a “to-do” list. Accomplishing everything that you could do for equitable practices in a school year would be exhausting. What activities would be the highest leverage for the population you serve?

In my own view, none of the activities listed previously are inherently just checkboxes. Done authentically and intentionally, they are all powerful. Done quickly and without context though, the work becomes visibly like an item crossed off someone’s list.

The real discomfort of the equity lens should not be that it will take more time or tangible resources. The real resource we tap into is our sense of comfort and familiarity. Traditions often favor the oppressor, so reassessing the procedures we are comfortable with is the most disrupting, but worthwhile, part of the process. Take, for instance, the Student Equity Panel recently hosted in my home building. We asked students in a one-on-one session with the School Board:

This group of eight students answered the same questions in front of the entire staff, undoubtedly addressing specific, uncomfortable situations that happened in some of those teachers’ classes. Also, the experience moves from being one discrete event (Think: “Check”) to an ongoing set of shared experiences that make everyone involved feel their voice is valued. Next step: why not expand this to a presentation to parents or the entire community? Lean into the discomfort; don’t hide the work away just because the answers are uncomfortable.

Here are some lessons learned from the Student Panel advice to adults:

These activities spark cognitive dissonance, because there is no correct path through the dilemma of educational inequity. The best advice I can give from experiences in the work is to be uncomfortable and know that activities, events, and surveys are not the sole answer. The emotional struggle and bravery of keeping an open mind, interrogating our own privileges, and continuously engaging with the idea that we can be better is the most authentic way we can create change. ◼