Edwardsville school superintendent to recommend new position focused on diversity

A new administrative position focused on diversity, equity and inclusion is on its way to becoming a reality in Edwardsville Community Unit District 7.

Superindendent Jason Henderson told the school board Monday night that in the future months, he would be making an official recommendation to create the administrative position.

Some of the job duties Henderson laid out include addressing curriculum through the lens of equity and diversity, recruiting and training diverse staff and working with the schools in the district to standardize a system for reporting and addressing issues related to bias.

“We’ve had people say ‘I don’t know where to go with my issues,’” Henderson said. “We’re trying to develop a system and have someone overall who’s in charge of maintaining and monitoring that system.

While the focus of the position will be on diversity, equity and inclusion, Henderson said it’s likely other administrative duties would be part of the job too.

The district created an equity task force in 2020. A diversity, equity and inclusion coordinator was one suggestion that came from the committee.

In December, a group of Edwardsville alumni spoke during open comment to share their experiences with racism in the district and underscore some data about discrepancies in student achievement by race, including special education.

They asked the board to sign a pledge saying they’d create and fill a diversity, equity and inclusion coordinator position by Monday’s meeting.

Henderson’s announcement about his future recommendation did not include any board action Monday, though there was a discussion.

Kristen Dowell, one of the alumni leading the push, said she was cautiously optimistic, and that she’d be looking forward at the job description to see if it was high quality.

“We’re happy this is headed in the right direction,” another alumni, Henry Lu, said. “ ... Now we need to make sure it comes to fruition.”

Some work around diversifying the curriculum is already underway.

Henderson said that this school year, more professional development was on diversity, equity and inclusion than on any other topic. He also said an optional social studies class called the Black Experience in America would be offered at Edwardsville High School for the first time next year.

This story was originally published January 27, 2021 at 7:00 AM.