Racial Equity Initiative continues in Asheville schools

Press release from the Asheville City Schools Foundation:

(ASHEVILLE)—Asheville has long struggled with racial equity issues and the Asheville City Schools (ACS) system has reflected this community wide issue.  In Asheville, racism is compounded by deep generational poverty with many of our families of color living in de facto segregated housing communities. This year, the Asheville City Schools Foundation (ACSF) has launched two projects, The Racial Equity Initiative that will help our district understand the barriers to success for our students of color, and The History of Desegregation in ACS Panel Discussions that will shed light on the legacy of that era affecting students in school today.

The Racial Equity Initiative
ACSF has launched a Racial Equity Initiative in order to increase the capacity of our schools to understand the barriers to success for our students of color. This includes examining school cultures and practices that prevent the full engagement of families of color and other structures of institutional racism that perpetuate the achievement gap. The goal of the Racial Equity grant would be to include people of color in school and classroom decision making and engagement, decreasing racial disparities and increasing racial equity in the school’s culture and student achievement. This year, ACSF granted awards of $5,000 each to Racial Equity Teams at Isaac Dickson, Hall Fletcher, Claxton, and Asheville Middle to explore these issues and potential solutions within their own school communities. Examples of Racial Equity grants’ plans range from initiating a systemic change in how a school serves its students through school-wide professional development to learning how to make a school’s PTO environment more inclusive and empowering for all families. For more information about the Racial Equity Initiative please visit ACSF’s website.

This August, ACSF kicked off their Racial Equity Initiative with a daylong training in racial equity for 50 educators and parents in Asheville City Schools.

Moving Forward by Looking Back First

At the Racial Equity training, an African American man native to Asheville shared that the impact of the group’s efforts would be limited by their collective lack of knowledge about the desegregation of ACS. He shared sentiments conveyed by some of the elders in the black community of hurt and mistrust of ACS.  He also shared that this lack of trust in the district has been passed on from generation to generation and has not created goodwill in relationships serving students today.  This conversation led to the creation of The History of Desegregation in ACS Panel discussions for teachers in ACS.

The History of Desegregation in ACS Panel Discussions

On October 27, 2014, ACSF hosted a panel discussion on the History of Desegregation in ACS as part of ACS staff professional development. Over 70 ACS staff and teachers were in attendance, including Superintendent Dr. Baldwin.  Panelists shared their stories of growing up in Asheville during desegregation of the city and the Asheville City Schools. Board of Education Chairwoman, Jacquelyn Hallum, described what the transition was like for her as a student, “Segregation felt safe I didn’t know anything else. Expectations were high. It was a community. After integration everything was different. There was no preparation or plan. It was a first for everyone and no one knew what to do. Things shifted and the achievement gap began; the expectations were no longer high.” Many panelists agreed that there was a shift in expectations of academic success for black students after desegregation.

The panelists were asked, “What is the lasting legacy of desegregation in our community?” Mr. Al Whitesides believes that legacy is the achievement gap, but it is “not a school problem, it is a community problem.” ACSF believes that it is integral to share the past histories with our community in order to combat current racial equity issues in our schools that still exist today. In order to close the achievement gap ACS and the community must join together to support our students and families. Teachers were surveyed after the panel and four major themes were recognized:  holding ALL students to high expectations, more community outreach and relationship building needed, requiring racial equity professional development for all ACS staff, and engaging more Black teachers, leaders, mentors, and history in the schools. ACSF hopes that by learning local history ACS schools can more effectively build relationships with African American families, creating the trust necessary to improve learning for all.

Get informed on this topic at an upcoming event:

A second “History of Desegregation in ACS Panel Discussion” will be held on December 4, 4:00-6:00PM. To reserve a seat, contact Katie Latino at the Asheville City Schools Foundation at Katie@acsf.org. Space is limited and first priority will be given to educators and families.