Echo has taken on the task of breaking down Park’s mission statement into five parts, diving into how each aspect of the mission is fulfilled and how it continues to be achieved. Over five weeks, each part will consist of a three-source story, a photo gallery, a podcast and a video featuring the voices of students, staff, administration and outside experts. The mission statement we’re breaking down is “Park Public Schools sees, inspires and empowers each student to achieve academic excellence and live their brilliance in a racially equitable learning environment that centers student voice and experience to energize and enhance the spirit of our community.”
The U.S. is a country that has had a very long history with the topic of race, a battle for equality and equity that has spanned generations. In the modern day, especially in our own lives, we can see how that battle has been fought in the education system. Park, our very own school district, declares in their mission statement that they strive for racial equity across the schools in the learning environment.
Joy Esboldt, who was a former teacher and equity coach at Park but is currently an assistant professor at the University of Delaware, said being aware of racial equity requires effort put into it. She said society gives her advantages because she isn’t a person of color, meaning she especially has to put work into understanding racial equity.
“Engaging in racial equity requires an ongoing commitment, particularly as a white person who’s been socialized in society to not notice or see race, and living in a society that benefits me as someone who has white skin,” Esboldt said.
Arika Mareck, Eastern County Carver School’s Executive Director of Equity and Inclusion, and another former teacher at Park, said inequality and racism have been deeply built into systems. She said when looking towards her students’ futures, she sees them trying to help the world be a better place and that, as their teacher, she works to help support her students reach that goal.
“It’s gonna be pretty hard to move anything forward because (racial inequality is) so steeped in how we do things,” Mareck said. “When I think of equity, I just think of humanity, and for me it’s just what you do, it’s what should be. I always thought when I was teaching, ‘What potential do my students have that could help make this world a better place? And how do I pull that out, no matter who they are, what they look like or where they’re from?’”
According to junior Emma Granda Esqueda, racial equity happens when roadblocks to opportunities based on race have been destroyed. She said people need to have an equal chance to do things in life, and that help should be more personalized to those who need it.
“(Racial equity looks like) the ability to have opportunities that have held them (back) before in the past, or possibly restricted them from having the same option of being equal with everyone else,” Esqueda said. “But the fact that equality with everyone could also have setbacks (where not everyone gets what they need), so that, when someone introduces racial equity, (people are) able to at least have some sort of advantage that could help them in their life (by giving everyone an equal chance).”
According to Mareck, there was often an imbalance between students of color and teachers of color at Park. She said awareness of race and how it affects others is critical for teachers, especially those who aren’t people of color.
“I know in Park when I was there, our teacher-to-student ratio of race was not, is not, demographically the same,” Mareck said. “We had more students of color than the teachers of color, and we continue to have that here, where I am. So, it’s very important that we have white teachers understand racial consciousness and the impact of what that looks like for them.”
Esqueda said racial equity should be present in education by giving aid to students, both for academics and other topics, allowing the gap created by systematic racism in access to support to close further. She said having someone who is there to help may improve a student’s experience at school.
“(Racial equity should show up at schools by) helping students, whether it be with academics or struggles they have outside of school because if they’re able to have at least some sort of support that they can lean on, it could allow them to have a better school education,” Esqueda said.
According to Esboldt, teachers will usually only look at racial equity in official scores from assessments and how well students do. She said it’s important for educators to be looking into the dynamics of the class and how students are able to express themselves in their education.
“(Racial equity should be) everywhere,” Esboldt said. “In this era of (education) policy, we often talk about (racial equity) in terms of test scores and performance, or enrollment numbers, and I think that matters, but I also think it really matters of what it feels like to be in classrooms and who feels like they belong, who feels like they are supported and seen as brilliant.”
According to Mareck, humanity’s own development is stunted by the racial disparity that is carried out by so many people and the systems we have. She said the way for people to get better is by making a space for everyone to be themselves unapologetically, particularly in education.
“Until we get to a place where everybody feels safer and valued and gets to be their full selves in any aspect of school, especially, I think we’re never going to be the best of ourselves. I think we could be so much further if we didn’t put up all these barriers around race,” Mareck said.
Esqueda said equality can have downsides for many people. She said that not everybody needs the same thing, meaning the idea of equality may not be as helpful to some as it would be to others.
“I’ve always liked, weirdly enough, equity over equality because although equality does mean the same thing for everyone, not everyone’s same thing allows them to have the same type of advantages,” Esqueda said. “Instead of giving the same materials, because whatever they may need inside or outside doesn’t work with those, so if they’re at least given the chance to have equity, it can help them in more ways.”
