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DEI committee presents recommendations; district outlines summer curriculum work
Summary
The district—s DEI committee presented four recommendations to the board: expand diverse hiring, conduct equity-focused administrative walkthroughs, monitor curricula and data for equity, and consider reorganizing the committee after the November elections; administrators also described an ambitious summer curriculum-writing effort.
The Jenkintown School District—s DEI committee summarized four recommendations to the board at the June 9 meeting, and administrators described an extensive summer curriculum-writing plan aimed at unifying standards across grades.
Dr. Yamini, presenting the DEI committee—s work, said the committee met through the year and put forward recommendations to increase diverse hiring consideration, have administrative equity "walkthroughs" to identify equity in teaching practices and content, continue monitoring curriculum and data for equitable outcomes, and adjust meeting times to encourage broader participation. The committee also discussed reorganizing leadership of the group, possibly after the November elections, to reflect changes in board membership.
"First one is continue to expand the hiring practices to ensure the consideration of diverse candidates," Dr. Yamini said, adding that the committee also recommended administrative equity walks and a review of the committee—s structure to increase stakeholder participation.
Administrators separately outlined planned curriculum work for this summer: an update and modernization of 'specials' (art, music, gym), development of a course-catalog style resource with course descriptions and goals, and continued implementation of elementary reading programs. The district described a multi-week effort involving dozens of teachers to produce scope-and-sequence documents and to pilot elementary mathematics in the coming year.
What—s next: The DEI committee suggested delaying any formal reorganization until after the November elections so that membership is clearer; curriculum teams will continue work over the summer and return materials to the board during the next school year for review and approval.
