Current job title in Akron Public Schools: Chief Diversity Officer.
Proposed new job title: Chief of Institutional Oversight.
This proposed change and others marked efforts last week by Akron Public Schools’ Equity Committee to walk back wholesale revisions recommended by Superintendent Michael Robinson’s administration — his attempt to comply with a federal request to eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion policies.
Robinson’s administration previously suggested removing entire paragraphs and subheadings from the district’s Racial Equity policy. The committee, under board member Rene Molenaur’s temporary leadership, instead last Thursday salvaged the spirit of the policies while removing language that violated the “Dear Colleague” letter from the Department of Education.
The deadline for compliance was Feb. 28. So far, the federal government has not penalized U.S. public schools for noncompliance, even though it threatened to do so.
Now, after lengthy discussions across three Equity Committee meetings, the changes – including a name change for the committee – will head to the Legal, Contracts and Board Policy Committee for review before going to the full board for a vote.
APS serves an incredibly diverse student body, which it’s obligated to educate. There’s approximately 2,300 English Learner students across the district’s 46 buildings. The district employs 32 interpreters who speak 48 different languages.
The proposed policy changes, in some ways, could bolster the district’s efforts to ensure access and success across the diverse student body. For instance, the Chief of Institutional Oversight could identify gaps that require federal funding.
“If anything, I see the potential that because we have put time and energy towards it, maybe we could even have an increase of resources towards some of the things that were already in the policy,” Molenaur told Signal Akron.
Among Thursday’s notable proposed changes:
- Changing the name of the Equity Committee to Comprehensive Operations and Institutional Oversight Committee.
- Changing the Chief Diversity Officer job title to Chief of Institutional Oversight.
- Outlining responsibilities of the CIO, including analyzing student access, identifying barriers and developing strategies to remove them.
- Changing language in the Student Discipline subsection of the Racial Equity Policy to remove references to the school-to-prison pipeline.
The “Dear Colleague” letter sparked local outcry, with members of the public voicing their concerns and discontent with the federal guidance. Board members present for Thursday’s meeting hoped the proposed changes still allow the district to serve its community.
“I would hope that they still feel that they are accepted, that they are invited,” board member Barbara Sykes said.
“Remember, with our doors, when you knock on it, we have to let everyone in, as we should.”
