Board of Education Policy – 7:12 Racial Equity

Oak Park and River Forest High School (OPRFHS) provides a dynamic, supportive learning environment that cultivates knowledge, skill, and character and strives for equity and excellence for all students. OPRFHS values the racial and ethnic diversity of its students and recognizes that an educational environment in which diversity is respected and valued contributes to successful educational outcomes for all students. OPRFHS also acknowledges that complex societal and historical factors, such as racism, contribute to inequities in our society. Institutional racism, cultural biases, and other societal factors can negatively impact a student’s sense of belonging and contribute to inequitable opportunity gaps as well as disparities in achievement and graduation rates between students of different races. OPRFHS aims to combat such concerns and provide all students the support and opportunity they need to succeed. This policy aims to address the systemic barriers to equity and access that disproportionately affect our students of color, who have experienced marginalization as shown through our historical data, and to take into account how race plays out in our daily lives and in our education system. 


While this policy primarily and explicitly addresses racial equity, it does so with the declaration that racial inequities are often intertwined with and compounded by disparities tied to other identities and factors. In order to realize equitable opportunities and outcomes for everyone, equity must be applied across, including but not limited to, race, ethnicity, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, religion, national origin, foster status, involvement with the juvenile justice system, IEP status, disability, learning difference, immigration status, or language. 

Educational equity and equality are not the same principles and should not be used interchangeably. Equality means treating all students the same regardless of differences. Equality can only succeed if all students start with the same needs and challenges. Equity rests on principles of justice and fairness and aims to remove barriers to provide each student the opportunity to benefit equally from the high-quality educational experience and outcomes that OPRFHS offers. OPRFHS recognizes that fostering educational equity may require allocating resources unequally to focus on barriers that may uniquely impact students of diverse backgrounds. 


The Board of Education will follow this policy in conducting its business and exercising its responsibilities. The Board of Education believes that student success is broadly shared by District staff, families, our community, and our students’ own efforts. Every adult in the school community should have the moral imperative, collective ownership, and will to act to eliminate racial bias and disparities.

Definitions

For the purposes of this policy, the following terms shall have the following meanings: 

“Bias” means prejudice in favor of or against a person or group relative to another, usually in a way considered to be unfair. 

"District staff" includes all employees, consultants, and contractors of District 200. 

"Diversity" or "Diverse" means variety in race or ethnicity; a range of races and ethnicities of people, as well as people with different beliefs. 

"Ethnicity" is a social construct that divides people into smaller social groups based on characteristics such as shared sense of group membership, values, behavioral patterns, language, political and economic interests, history and ancestral geographical background. 

“Implicit Bias” means biases of which people usually are unaware or which operate at the subconscious level. Implicit bias is usually expressed indirectly. 

"Institutional Racism" means social policies, practices, procedures, and/or discourse that benefit people who are white at the exclusion of people of color, often unintentionally. 

“Opportunity Gap” means the unequal or inequitable distribution of educational resources and opportunities on the basis of race and/or ethnicity; resources may include staffing, academic supports, social and emotional supports, high-quality curriculum, and other programs. This gap can contribute to or intensify lower educational aspirations, achievement, and attainment for members of affected groups. 

"Racial Equity" means the systematic fair treatment of people of all races and ethnicities that allows equitable outcomes. Once racial and ethnic inequities are eliminated, race and ethnicity are not factors in outcomes. 

“Racism” means the prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against someone of a different race based on the belief that one’s own race is superior.  

 

Implementation, Accountability, and Monitoring 

The Board directs the Superintendent to establish, in accordance with this policy, written procedures and other guidance to implement this policy. The written procedures and guidance shall include, but not be limited to, the following areas for action:

  • Accountability and Monitoring. The administrative procedures shall include methods for accountability and metrics for evaluation of programs and plans therein. The Superintendent shall annually report to the Board and the community on the metrics and measures established to track implementation of this policy.
  • Equity Analysis. The administrative procedures shall include the use of a racial equity impact assessment tool to help decision makers consider racial equity when assessing policies, procedures, professional development, and other practices and choose options that mitigate the risk of racial inequity, implicit bias, and other unintended consequences. The administrative procedures shall further address professional development regarding the tool and establish a written process to guide use of the tool.
  • Equitable Practices, Procedures, and Programs. The administrative procedures shall include a process for review of OPRFHS practices, procedures, and programs to consider whether they result in over- or under-representation of any group of students on the basis of race. If such disparity is found, the District will consider revision or elimination of the practice, procedure, or program.
  • Resource Allocation. The administrative procedures shall afford flexibility to differentiate resource allocation on the basis of student need in an effort to promote and provide equity in education while complying with all requirements of relevant state and federal law.
  • Stakeholder and Community Engagement. The administrative procedures shall provide intentional, targeted outreach to community partners and families aimed at creating robust racially and culturally diverse stakeholder engagement, welcoming students and families, and educating stakeholders on services and resources available to them.
  • Diverse Workplace Initiatives. The administrative procedures shall include a plan to recruit, employ, support, retain, and develop racially and linguistically diverse and culturally responsive administrative, instructional, and support personnel throughout its divisions and departments. The procedures shall further address a plan to provide leadership and mentoring opportunities to diverse employees, procedures to track and report on diverse teacher retention, and a plan to identify, analyze, and address causes of diverse employee turnover.
  • Professional Development. The administrative procedures shall include a plan to provide professional development to strengthen employees’ knowledge and skills of strategies for eliminating bias and disparities in student achievement and district hiring practices. The procedures shall further address required professional development regarding strategies to limit and/or mitigate the harm of such disparities; implicit bias in hiring practices; cultural responsiveness; the historical roots of institutional racism; and equitable, inclusive, and anti-oppressive methods.
  • Welcoming School Environment. The administrative procedures shall include a plan to offer a welcoming, emotionally supportive, safe, inclusive culture that empowers all students and reflects and supports the diversity of its community, including students, parents, families, faculty, staff, and other community members.
  • Discipline Disparities. The administrative procedures shall include a plan to provide alternatives to punitive discipline, including a focus on social-emotional learning and restorative practices. The procedures shall address the goal of keeping our students in the classroom and ensuring that they have equitable access to instruction.
  • Culturally Responsive and Relevant Teaching and Learning. The administrative procedures shall include a plan to intentionally seek out and consider diverse perspectives of students, faculty, and staff when developing and implementing teaching and learning practices and curriculum. The procedures shall further address selection of classroom materials, assessments, and teaching that reflect diversity and encourage understanding and appreciation of unique cultures, classes, languages, and ethnicities.
  • Equity Leadership and Infrastructure. The administrative procedures shall include a plan for funding and implementing activities to further the goals of this policy, including necessary leadership and infrastructure.
  • Racial Incident Protocol. The administrative procedures shall address the District’s robust enforcement of Board policies 7:10, Equal Educational Opportunities, and 7:20, Harassment of Students Prohibited, which prohibit discrimination and harassment on the basis of, among other characteristics, race. The procedures shall further outline the process for students or other members of the District community to file complaints regarding an alleged incident of discrimination, pursuant to Board policies 7:10, 7:20, or 2:260, whichever is applicable. 

 

Administrative Procedure 7:12 Racial Equity 

In accordance with Board Policy 7:12, Racial Equity Policy, the administrative procedures shall address the District’s robust enforcement of Board policies 7:10, Equal Educational Opportunities, and 7:20, Harassment of Students Prohibited, which prohibit discrimination and harassment on the basis of, among other characteristics, race. The procedures shall further outline the process for students or other members of the District community to file complaints regarding an alleged incident of discrimination, pursuant to Board policies 7:10, 7:20, or 2:260, whichever is applicable. 

 

Racial Incident Protocol 

Definition of Terms: 

For the purposes of this component, the following terms from Policy 7:12 shall have the following meanings: 

“Bias” means prejudice in favor of or against a person or group relative to another, usually in a way considered to be unfair. 


“Discrimination” refers to the unequal treatment of a person or group based on a protected characteristic such as race, gender, sex, sexual orientation, disability, or religion. 


“Racism” means the prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against someone of a different race based on the belief that one's own race is superior. 


“Reporting Party” Individual(s) that report experiencing an alleged incident of racial misconduct to the Racial Incident Response Team. 


“Responding Party” Individual(s) that have received racial misconduct allegations from a reporting party.

 

Incident of Racial Bias: 

All forms of bias, discrimination, and racism can be both explicit (aware, voluntary and intentional) and implicit (unaware, involuntary and unintentional). All manifestations of such can be both personal (an individual act of bias, meanness, or exclusion) or institutional (supported and sanctioned by power and authority that confers privilege on members of a dominant group while disadvantaging members of other groups).

Examples of Racial Misconduct: 

  • Comments and/or conduct with racial connotation(s) or subject matter that are demeaning to a person’s race, skin color, ethnicity, cultural characteristics, or national origin;
  • engaging in or sharing stereotypes, memes, jokes, name-calling, ridicule or mockery, insults or put-downs, physical gestures or enactments, photographs or objects involving a person’s race, skin color, ethnicity, cultural characteristics, or national origin;
  • requests or demands for favorable treatment due to a person’s race, skin color,
  • ethnicity, cultural characteristics, or national origin;
  • express/implied communications that race has adversely affected decisions regarding such matters as employment, work assignment or status, academic standing, grades, receipt of financial aid, letters of recommendation, or receipt of a District 200 benefit or service;
  • the actual use of race, skin color, ethnicity, cultural characteristics, or national origin to affect decisions regarding such matters as employment, work assignment or status, academic standing, grades, and participation in student activities;
  • physical assaults, threats, and/or intimidation directed towards someone, that is relative to a person’s race, skin color, ethnicity, cultural characteristics, or national origin;
  • denial or obstruction of access to services due to a person’s race, skin color, ethnicity, cultural characteristics, or national origin;
  • unequal application of District 200 policies as a result of a person’s race, skin color, ethnicity, cultural characteristics, or national origin;
  • any other racial misconduct that substantially or unreasonably interferes with an individual’s work, academic performance, or extracurricular involvement.

 

Reporting a Racial Incident to the Racial Incident Response Team:

District 200 strives to be a racially conscious institution dedicated to confronting racism in its explicit and implicit forms. Guided by this principle, we are intentional about creating an educational environment that values the rich diversity of our school community. If students or employees experience racial misconduct, an incident shall be reported to the Office of Equity. 

Students can also report racial misconduct by telling a trusted adult, texting the Tip Line on the back of student IDs, or by completing the Racial Incident Reporting Form found on the school website. Once a complaint is made, the Office of Equity will begin the fact-finding process with assistance from the Racial Incvident Response Team. 

Response to Report: 

District 200 shall promptly and equitably address any complaints of racial misconduct by: 

1.    requiring an interview process for both the reporting and responding parties; additional interviews may be extended to witnesses of any alleged racial misconduct;
2.    treating all reports as confidential to the extent consistent with conducting a thorough investigation;
3.    advising the reporting party of alleged racial misconduct about available school and community resources;
4.    assisting the reporting party in accessing school and community resources, including campus and local law enforcement authorities, when such assistance is requested or required;
5.    making reasonable changes in working or academic arrangements, sports, and extracurricular participation as appropriate;
6.    advising both the reporting and the responding parties that the outcome of a given report was handled appropriately;
7.    taking restorative, disciplinary, or other corrective action as appropriate.

The Racial Incident Response Team (RIRT) is comprised of the following positions:

Racial Incident Response Coordinator: 
Director of Equity and Student Success: 

  • Receives student and adult reports of racial misconduct
  • Collaborates with Deans and teachers in response to student reports of racial misconduct
  • Collaborates with Employee Racial Incident Response Managers in response to adult reports of racial misconduct:

Employee Racial Incident Response Managers:

  • Associate Superintendent
  • Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources
    • Receives employee reports of racial misconduct from the Office of Equity
    • Receives reports of racial misconduct directly from employees

Responsibilities of the Racial Incident Response Team

 1.    To receive all complaints regarding racial misconduct by students, faculty, and staff;
2.    to ensure that the reporting and responding parties are provided information about and access to school and community resources when appropriate or requested;
3.    to ensure that the reporting party receives guidance on how to contact campus and local law enforcement if appropriate or requested;
4.    to investigate reports of racial misconduct in a prompt and equitable manner;
5.    to determine whether or not a complaint is substantiated; and
6.    to issue any appropriate consequences, including restorative practices, disciplinary action;
7.    to inform the responding party of those consequences.

No other individual or entity may engage in the fact-finding processes of a report of racial misconduct by a student or employee on behalf of Oak Park and River Forest High School District 200. The Racial Incident Response Team will maintain files on the fact-finding process, which will be kept confidential to the extent consistent with protocol. 

Making a Report

Reporting a racial incident allegedly committed by an employee, student, outside contractor, or visitor: 


Students shall report an alleged racial incident by a faculty member, a staff member, student, outside contractor, or visitor by any of the methods listed below:  

  • Contact The Office of Equity
  • Send a text to the “Tip Line” located on back of the student ID
  • Inform a trusted Adult, whom shall then report the complaint to the Office of Equity
  • Submit an online Racial Incident Report Form

The following procedures shall be applied according to the status of the person accused of racial misconduct by a student: 

For allegations against an employee/campus visitor/ outside contractor: 

  • The Racial Incident Response Coordinator will collaborate with the Employee Racial Incident Response Managers on fact-finding relative to an employee/campus visitor/outside contractor who is accused of racial misconduct.
  • The Superintendent will be informed if the Racial Incident Response Coordinator is the person accused of racial misconduct.
  • The corresponding Executive Cabinet member, Division Head, and Faculty Senate Chairperson will be notified of employee racial misconduct allegations.
  • The Racial Incident Response Coordinator shall report the findings and recommended action to the Superintendent, corresponding Executive Cabinet member, Division Head, and Faculty Senate Chairperson.

For allegations against a student: 

  • The Office of Equity shall contact parents/guardians of all students involved in a report of racial misconduct.
  • Parents/guardians shall be informed that they can be present during the fact-finding meeting involving their student.
  • The Office of Equity shall collaborate with the Student Racial Incident Response Managers on fact-finding regarding a student who is accused of racial misconduct.
  • The Office of Equity will follow up with all involved students and parents/guardians once the fact-finding process is complete. Findings and recommended actions will be reported to the Superintendent.

Employees are encouraged to report alleged racial misconduct by another employee, an outside contractor, or a visitor by the reporting methods listed below: 

  • Contact The Office of Equity
  • Contact and Employee Racial Incident Response Manager
  • Submit a Racial Incident Response Form (Online)

The following procedures shall be applied according to the status of the person accused of racial misconduct by an employee: 

1.    Student--If an employee alleges that a student has committed racial misconduct, he/she/they shall report it to the Office of Equity. Once a complaint is filed, the Executive Director of Equity shall collaborate with Racial Incident Response Managers to proceed with fact-finding and decide whether disciplinary action is appropriate.
2.    Campus visitor or outside contractor—The Office of Equity is to be informed if a campus visitor or outside contractor is accused of racial misconduct. The Executive Director of Equity shall inform the Superintendent and Chief Financial Officer of the allegation of racial misconduct prior to the fact-finding process with Racial Incident Response Managers.
3.    Employees - If an employee alleges that a District employee has committed racial misconduct, he/she/they shall report it to the Office of Equity who will then collaborate with the Racial Incident Response Managers in the fact-finding and decide whether consequence is appropriate.

Disciplinary Actions

Sanctions for racial misconduct may take different forms depending on the severity of the offense. In those situations where, racial misconduct has been established following a thorough process of fact- finding, appropriate action will be taken. Consequences will be informed by restorative practices with an emphasis on repairing relationships. 

For students: appropriate action will be taken in accordance with the Behavior Education Plan. 
For adults: appropriate disciplinary measures will be taken, in accordance with District policy.

Restorative Philosophy 

Oak Park and River Forest High School is a restorative institution that believes in creating and maintaining healthy relationships to create a caring culture where every member thrives. We believe that it is critical to engage in repairing harm in order to transform conflict into teachable moments that create opportunities for behavior education. Restorative practices as a form of consequence can be presented in a number of ways. Listed below are some examples of repairing harm caused by racial misconduct: 

  • Peace circles
  • Racial equity coaching
  • Parent/student meetings
  • Reconciliation through apology
  • Impact letters

Retaliation 

Retaliation, including threats or other forms of intimidation, against a reporting party or any other party involved in implementing the District 200 Racial Incident Protocol are violations of the policy and may be grounds for disciplinary action. Intentionally Dishonest Complaints of Racial Misconduct 
Lack of corroborating evidence should not discourage complainants from reporting racial misconduct to Oak Park and River Forest High School. If, however, complaints are found to have been intentionally dishonest or made maliciously without regard for truth, may be subject to disciplinary action. 

For students: Appropriate action will be taken in accordance with the Behavior Education Plan. 
For adults: Appropriate disciplinary measures will be taken, in accordance with District policy. 

Reporting Racial Incidents