The Center hosted its first Annual Meeting with insightful speakers in the Education field to start a conversation about expanding equity in schools across the Granite State.

Nearly one year since the faces behind the New Hampshire Center for Justice and Equity (the Center) got together to bring this idea to life - something that Board Chair Dwight Davis called ‘getting in good trouble’ - the organization hosted its first Annual Meeting. On the afternoon of May 24th, 2023, board members, guest speakers, staff, sponsors, donors, and the community gathered in the Derryfield Country Club to discuss ‘Opportunities for Advancing Equity in Education’ in New Hampshire. 

The Center welcomed guests Dr. Patrick Tutwiler, Dr. Esther Asbell, Quincy Worthy, Catherine Kabala, and Dr. Jennifer Gillis as panel members leading a conversation about the issues, challenges, solutions, and success stories of driving equity in schools across New England, namely New Hampshire and Massachusetts. Center board member Dr. Jamaal Downey opened the discussion.

Successful School Ratings Don’t Reflect Successful Outcomes For All

After some time to network and settle in, the audience welcomed Dr. Patrick Tutwiler, the Massachusetts Secretary of Education, who acknowledged all the teachers and school staff in the room before starting his keynote talk. Inspired by the work of James Baldwin, Dr. Tutwiler centered his speech around the idea that all children are all of ours, meaning that we as a society are responsible for the well-being and success of all children, regardless of their background. To illustrate his point, Dr. Tutwiler shared that Massachusetts students have consistently earned at or near the nation’s top National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) scores, but a 2017 report revealed that this is true only for some. Students from disadvantaged socioeconomic contexts, with disruptive family dynamics, or from underserved racial and ethnic backgrounds do not enjoy the same classroom success as their peers.

Dr. Tutwiler also advanced an idea that the panelists circled back to during the event: Policymakers, superintendents, and principals need to provide support and the appropriate enabling environment for teachers and school staff to ensure they are capable of supporting equity goals. For some, that means ensuring nobody feels isolated, that the teachers remain united, and that resolutions reflect the push toward equity. For others, it means transparency and openness about previous equity efforts that may or may not have succeeded and ensuring DEIJB professionals are supported and sustained.

New Hampshire Schools Need More Teachers of Color and More DEIJB Professionals

After listening to Dr. Tutwiler’s insightful opening remarks, other education experts joined the stage for a fruitful panel discussion. The first topic brought forward by Dr. Jennifer Gillis, the Superintendent of the Manchester NH School District, is the need for more data in the Granite State’s educational system, relating to attendance, course completion, behavior, and lived experience. Dr. Esther Asbell, currently serving as Associate Superintendent for SAU #16 in Exeter, NH, and incoming President of the New Hampshire School Administrators Association, highlighted the need to hire more DEIJ professionals for school districts across New Hampshire, as well as the need to establish a common language for leadership in the State that clearly distinguishes between equity and equality. 

Quinci Worthy, the Director of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice for the Concord School District, added that schools lack culturally competent curriculums, and need to focus on building trust with underserved students and repairing harm. Dr. Jamaal Downey referred to this as humanizing pedagogy and centering the students, two aspects that are essential to advance equity in New Hampshire’s school system. Regarding the restoration of trust, Catherine Kabala, a Student Assistance Program counselor at Manchester Central High School, addressed the lack of representation in school faculty and how it hinders students who feel like they don’t belong. 

From the experience of these professionals, divergent identities at school include students of color, multilingual students, English language learners, special needs students, LGBTQ+ youth, and children with mental health issues or neurodiverse. Both Mr. Worthy and Ms. Kabala, who are among the only persons of color in the schools where they work, have become the closest some of the children have to a teacher that looks like them. Catherine Kabala embraced this unexpected role by inviting community members to speak, mentor the students, and teach them how to use their voices. As a result, some of the seniors at Manchester Central School created a Student Advocacy Committee and met with the principal once a month. In Concord, Quinci Worthy seeks to make a difference by showing up to student groups and ensuring his office is a welcoming, safe space. He also trains older students on empowerment and restorative justice.

Policy, Funding, and Accountability Drive Equity in Education

For Dr. Gillis, funding DEIJ work in schools is a top priority. She highlighted that New Hampshire has one of the lowest per-pupil investment rates across school systems in the United States, and issues of equity need to be integrated into all the activities of the school districts. She advised teachers and education professionals to stay on top of language shifts in policies and resolutions, as there is pushback from parents and school boards against things deemed progressive and related to diversity, equity, and inclusion. 

On the other hand, Dr. Asbell praised a recent review of the 306 Education Rules, which set the minimum standards for operating public schools, through an equity lens - however,  cautioning how difficult it can be to make rule changes because of the process required to change those rules. She also shared that there has been an effort to make the data more accurate, for example, clearly distinguishing between inappropriate language and racial slurs when reporting student behavior incidents. To this, Dr. Gillis added that connecting school data with student stories would humanize the work to become more equitable, as well as address the root causes of inequities.

In the end, the panel agreed that while change starts with grassroots conversations, New Hampshire needs stronger leadership to advance equity in education. Ensuring equity is a responsibility shared by all, and it is especially important in our school systems as New Hampshire rapidly becomes more diverse, particularly its young people, with 20.2 percent of New Hampshire’s under the age of 18 belonging to a minority group. It is our collective responsibility that our students are respected, protected, and set up for success. The session concluded with a reminder that the Center is here to push this work forward in the short and long term.

By Carlota de Almeida