Office of Equity Newsletter

The Office of Equity is excited to present this newsletter for the months of January and February 2022.

This edition highlights events occurring during January and February, including No Name Calling Week and Black History Month. You will also see updates about the LCPS Comprehensive Equity Plan and our Student Equity Ambassadors.

The work of equity is truly "together work" and collaboration amongst schools and offices in the division is evident as LCPS continues to do the work for students and staff.

Please feel free to reach out to Lottie Spurlock, Director of Equity, at Lottie.Spurlock@lcps.org or Traci Townsend, Supervisor of Equity, at Traci.Townsend@lcps.org with any questions. Also, be sure to visit the Office of Equity's Webpage.

At the December 14, 2021 meeting, the Loudoun County School Board approved a Proclamation naming January 17-21, 2022 as No Name-Calling Week in Loudoun County Public Schools.

No Name-Calling Week has been recognized annually since 2004 and organized by K-12 educators aimed at ending name-calling of all kinds and bullying in school communities.

Several schools across the division participated in No Name-Calling Week. A few examples include students at Willard Middle School who made crowns and bookmarks with their school colors that highlighted No-Name Calling Week and students at Virtual Distance Learning who held a Spirit Week and engaged in conversations around no-name calling. Also, students at Tuscarora High School created art with the theme, "Words Hurt," to recognize No-Name Calling Week. A picture of the display at Tuscarora HS is shared above.

The full proclamation can be found here:

NO NAME CALLING WEEK

As we are still in the opening weeks of the 2022 year, we recognize the start of a new year typically represents an opportunity to set goals and reflect upon previous ones. As we continue to strive to eliminate barriers to student success, one area for continued focus is working to be more inclusive in our communication with others. This includes the use of person-first language, as well as gender neutral language; and doing so can positively impact how we interface with others.

In your interactions and dialogue with others, look for opportunities to pause and remember to represent the person first and then an aspect of their identity. In doing so, we allow for more empathy, understanding, and humanity in our interactions with others.

An example of what this might look like in the classroom and beyond is captured in the graphic below.

Black History Month, which initiated in 1926 as a week-long celebration, became a month-long celebration in 1976 and is now recognized annually during the month of February.

During Black History Month, we recognize and celebrate the resilience, influence, and spirit of African Americans and highlight the many achievements and profound contributions, they have made to the economic, cultural, spiritual, educational, and political development of the Commonwealth of Virginia and the entire United States.

On January 25, 2022, the Loudoun County School Board passed a proclamation proclaiming February 1st through February 28th, 2022 to be BLACK HISTORY MONTH in Loudoun County Public Schools. The full proclamation can be found here: BLACK HISTORY MONTH

During the month of February, the Communications and Community Engagement Office in collaboration with the Office of Equity will share images and videos highlighting Black History Month. The theme will be "Black History is My Story" and staff and students will be featured in these highlights. The focus will be on joy, hope, strength, pride, love and other aspects of Black History.

The Social Science and Global Studies Office shared a list of resources and lessons that schools can use to celebrate Black history and discuss ways to extend the conversation beyond February.

You can also find a great deal of information about Black History Month sponsored by The History Channel.

The Student Equity Ambassadors have met three times this school year. During the meetings, students discussed their role as student equity ambassadors in their schools and action steps they would like to take to support equity in their schools.

The students generated many ideas, such as: recognizing foods from different cultures through food services; creating advisory lessons regarding diversity; developing a session on how to create a safer and more accepting environment; organizing affinity groups; and raising awareness during Black History Month, Women’s History Month, and Arab-American Heritage Month.

It is clear that the Student Equity Ambassadors have great ideas and want to take action to help ensure that their schools represent welcoming, affirming, and inclusive environments. We are excited to hear their voices and watch as they make a positive impact on our school division.

The Loudoun County Public Schools’ Comprehensive Equity Plan was approved by the School Board in September 2020.

Our work across the school division continues to involve all aspects of the equity framework as part of the division-wide Comprehensive Equity Plan. Over the last two years leaders in multiple departments have designed and led professional learning on how LCPS can work to be more culturally responsive within our school settings. In our goal towards creating a welcoming and inclusive school experience for every student, the focus this year is family engagement. The pandemic has revealed the need to explore and implement new ways to strengthen engagement with families. School administrators and Equity Leads are working with families to develop deeper partnerships in support of each student’s success.

Visit our Office of Equity website at www.lcps.org/equityoverview. The website provides a variety of information, including Resources for the LCPS Community.

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