Shaker Heights, Let’s Take Equity a Step Further
By Etienne R. LeGrand, CEO of Vivify Performance
Persistent achievement gaps between black students and their white peers, led the Shaker Heights School District to grapple with hard questions of implicit bias, family responsibility and the merits of tracking students by ability level. While 68 percent of white 11th graders were enrolled in at least one AP or IB course, only 12 percent of black students were.
Shaker Heights, located in Shaker Heights, OH, a suburb of Cleveland, is deserving of much credit for its efforts to be a model for school integration. It is one of the few districts that voluntarily bused students and drew boundary lines to make its schools more integrated. The community’s principled stance on healthy race relations have been fundamental to its quest for black student achievement and cross racial friendships. But many years of good intentions and a valiant effort leave citizens puzzled by student results that remain unequal.
A kerfuffle between one of Shaker’s black high school students, Olivia Dowell and her white AP English teacher, Jodi Podl last November demonstrates how moving kids of different races into the same building isn’t the same as producing equal outcomes. Olivia had been dozing off in class and playing with her phone. Her first big assignment of the year was late. Her teacher admonished her to do better and according to the Olivia, publicly embarrassed her.
This prompted Olivia’s mother to fire off a 3-page complaint, suggesting racism and charging bullying. The district suspended Podl. An investigation quickly dismissed the allegation of racism, but the district continued to investigate her for bullying.
The teachers union president urged teachers to attend a school meeting to discuss the incident, warning “what happened to Jody could happen to them.” Podl’s fellow teachers were furious about the situation and the invisible “us versus them” cultural barrier came into view.
What’s curious to me is the mother’s decision to fire off a written complaint rather than engage in a conversation with the teacher and the school district’s decision to suspend Podl before talking with all parties to understand what happened before making a decision.
Lesson Learned: Shaker Heights is Part of a School District with a Culture Problem
I, like many parents, have felt a need to have my children’s backs when confronted with their expressions of hurt feelings and perceived wrong doing, so I fully understand Olivia’s mom’s inclination to take action. It’s just the actions taken by her and the district tells me a couple of things:
There was no meaningful relationship between Olivia’s mom and her teacher
Currently, Shaker Heights’ school policy that necessitated the suspension of Podl’s exists in the absence of a healthy district culture. This district culture would inform employees, parents and student on how they are expected to treat one another, such as engaging all the parties involved to discuss what happened in order to problem solve how it could be prevented in the future.
Every teacher should let their students know when they behave in ways that will undermine their learning and success. I’d agree dozing off and playing with your phone qualify as such behavior. But misbehavior does not give teachers permission to speak to students without dignity and respect or to admonish them publicly, no matter the point you intend to make. Public intimidation and disrespect undermines the psychological safety students need to learn and the trust between student and teacher that black students in particular need to feel in their learning environment.
Shaker Heights’ leadership, like leaders of many other school districts, believe that an equity task force and an equity policy will help “get to the bottom” of racial tensions and skirmishes such as this one and close persistent achievement gaps. These task forces will provide some guidance, but only if leaders also address the human behaviors and mindsets that appear in the way employees, students and parents interact with one another.
When problems arise it’s less about who’s to blame than what needs to be done differently to eliminate the problem, including acknowledging that students are individuals—not widgets with unique stories and experiences. To move to this place, everyone needs to see each other, including what makes us unique and conduct ourselves as if we are on the same side.