Policy committee reviews final draft of district equity statement

Superintendent Dr. Salvini presented a revised equity statement to the Wallingford‑Swarthmore School District policy committee on Oct. 7, saying the draft was edited after review by student affinity groups and external equity partners.

Dr. Salvini said the revision reverses two opening sentences so the statement begins with belief and follows with action, and shifts language to name students and families more directly. “We believe that equity is fundamental to the success of every student,” she said while describing the edits and the decision to center students in the text.

The superintendent told the committee the draft is the result of outreach to the Black Student Union, the Young Activist Coalition and the Feminism Club, and that students pushed administrators to describe concrete next steps beyond the statement itself. She said the administration will use the statement to develop a formal equity policy and that the district attorney, Attorney D'Azzio, is reviewing other districts' approaches to inform implementation.

Board members who spoke praised the process of external review and affirmed the emphasis on students. Miss Watkins said she appreciated that the statement “centered on students,” and another board member described the draft as a stronger, clearer version of previous language.

The committee agreed to finalize the draft for posting on the district website and to continue work on an implementing equity policy at future meetings. No formal vote on a final policy occurred at this committee meeting; the next step is policy development and further review.