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Hoosac Valley Regional DEIB committee reviews attendance-letter process and district training plan
Summary
At its May 7 meeting, the Hoosac Valley Regional DEIB Committee reviewed three sample attendance letters and agreed on next steps for a districtwide attendance protocol, discussed a summer DEIB professional learning catalog (including a paid NAACP White Learning Circle), and checked progress on long-term goals and external partnerships.
The Hoosac Valley Regional Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging (DEIB) Committee met May 7, 2025, at the Hoosac Valley Middle and High School Resource Center to review prior minutes, finalize attendance-letter templates and plan districtwide DEIB professional development.
The meeting opened with a recap of the April 2, 2025 minutes and a motion to accept them; Jen Solak moved to accept and Kelly Riechers seconded, though the transcript does not record a final tally. The committee then turned to a package of three sample attendance letters and a broader discussion about standardizing attendance protocols across the district.
Aaron Dean, committee member, was assigned to share an edited attendance letter for committee approval and to discuss recommended protocol changes with the district administration before returning an updated draft. Committee discussion identified possible additions to the attendance process, including inviting dialogue through the letters and using personal phone calls for cases of chronic absenteeism; specific operational details and any required approvals were not specified at the meeting.
Members next reviewed a proposed HVRSD professional learning catalog for DEIB work. The catalog under consideration included summer courses and a deeper “Trauma and Resilience” series, and referenced a paid NAACP White Learning Circle opportunity for educators. The committee also noted the Bloomz training rollout (recorded in documents as 1/15/2025) and expressed interest in expanding programming to elementary grades and in pursuing a districtwide anti-racism book study; funding sources and exact schedules were not specified in the discussion.
On long-term goals, the committee discussed steps to improve data collection and stakeholder pipelines, including coordinating information flow between SEPAC, the School Committee and district administrators and bringing Dropout Prevention data and Crew-related data collection updates to the committee. Members reviewed potential partnerships with outside agencies — the District Attorney’s office, Elizabeth Freeman Center, Choices and Optimal Healing — as referral or support partners for students; how those partnerships would be formalized or funded was not described in the record.
Other agenda items included exploring affinity groups and principal newsletters as engagement tools and potential sponsorship of elementary-level anti-racism programming (a CPPI program, Young Hearts/Open Minds, was flagged as a possible partner). The meeting closed with next steps: Aaron Dean will share the edited attendance letter and follow up with administration, and committee members will bring ideas for anti-racist programming at the elementary level and for finalizing the summer PD series at the next meeting.
No binding policy votes or budgetary decisions were recorded in the transcript.
