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West Chester Area School District staff outline equity work, restorative practices and partnership exploration with Cheyney University
Summary
District staff updated the Teaching, Learning and Equity Committee on efforts to expand academic supports, implement a cohesive restorative-practices model, and explore a strengthened partnership with Cheyney University to build teacher pipelines; a resident’s public comment supported restorative practices.
At the Jan. 14 Teaching, Learning and Equity Committee meeting of the West Chester Area School District, staff provided a progress report on district equity initiatives, described plans to expand restorative practices and reported on exploratory talks with Cheyney University about strengthening local teacher pipelines.
Dr. Reynolds, presenting the equity update on behalf of Dr. Brown, said the district is organizing its equity work around three words: “access, opportunity, and support.” He described three focus areas: academic supports to close achievement gaps, workforce practices, and a focused partnership with Cheyney University. “How are we supporting our students that need additional time and support,” Reynolds asked as he described expanded use of progress monitoring and benchmarking tools and the extension of i-Ready diagnostics to middle and freshman students to provide earlier, formative indicators.
On restorative practices, staff told the committee they intend to establish a cohesive, districtwide model and to provide targeted training. Reynolds said the district will host Rachel Cutney from the intermediate unit at an upcoming DELP meeting to “reframe what restorative practices are” and to provide targeted training. A member of the public, Judy DeFonzo of East Goshen, urged the committee to pursue restorative approaches. DeFonzo said she had attended a day-long presentation on the approach and described it as drawn from Native American approaches and focused on teaching empathy and behavioral skills rather than immediate punishment: “It’s a very good model,” she said.
Staff also described exploratory discussions with Cheyney University (a historically Black university in the region) to strengthen a pathway for education students into district placements for observation and student teaching. Reynolds said transportation for Cheyney students is one constraint the district is examining and that planning and programming conversations have continued between district staff and Cheyney administrators.
Committee members voiced support for the Cheyney partnership. One committee member said the partnership is “a great avenue” to help both student teachers and the district recruit a more diverse workforce. The district said it will provide a further update at the committee’s February meeting.
The presentation was an informational update; no formal action on policy or partnerships was recorded in committee minutes during this meeting.
