Board hears first reading of revised nondiscrimination and affirmative-action policy

Eric Depp, executive director of human resources for the Arlington School District, presented a first reading of proposed revisions to Policy 50.10 (Nondiscrimination and Affirmative Action).

"We have a revision for you on policy 50.10, and you can see there's quite a bit of red on this one," Depp said, explaining the changes are principally wording updates and examples meant to clarify what discrimination and discriminatory harassment can look like. He added the policy now includes a complaint procedure.

Board members asked how the policy relates to affirmative-action goals and district recruitment. Director Kelly asked how the district balances hiring on skills and abilities with efforts to recruit educators who reflect student demographics. Depp said the policy and the district’s goals align with state law and the district’s own improvement goals: "These align with state law. Right. And so we also have our own goals — the district improvement goals — that have focus on... hiring the best people... and having a very diverse staff because we value all representation."

Depp told the board the revisions were a WASDA recommendation and that some policy changes were largely stylistic while others add clarity to the complaint process. He said timelines for implementing policy changes vary; some law-driven updates require immediate adoption, while this policy can be considered on the regular policy schedule.

Board members urged continued outreach to encourage diverse applicant pools. Director Kelly said the district should continue recruitment at hiring fairs and community events to expand candidate diversity; Director Diamond and others emphasized the need to maintain nondiscrimination while pursuing representation goals.

The presentation was a first reading; the board did not vote on the policy at this meeting and will see the revised policy on a future agenda.