DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) in the workplace has been in the news in recent weeks as figures on the political right like Elon Musk and Donald Trump, Jr. have claimed it gives an unearned professional advantage to women and people of color. But in local school districts, DEI initiatives are commonplace, with school officials saying they’re good for students and staff alike.
But what exactly is DEI? Local school district officials describe it differently. In the Kingston City School District (KCSD), there are two administrators dedicated to DEI: Kathy Sellitti, director of diversity, equity and inclusion; and Angela Armstrong, director of recruitment/retention and equity. But KCSD Superintendent Paul Padalino said the district’s DEI efforts are about giving students an equal footing, and creating a staff that mirrors the culturally and ethnically diverse student population.
“I know DEI is like the current term, but we kind of talk really about culturally responsive education and making sure that we are creating the kind of difference between mirrors and windows,” he said. “When you look in the curriculum, do you see yourself? Or when you look in the curriculum, do you see through a window and see someone else’s culture?”
New Paltz Central School District (NPCSD) Superintendent Stephen Gratto said his district’s focus includes a B at the end for belonging.
“In (the) NPCSD, we use DEIB not just DEI because it is really important that we remain focused on the goal of having all stakeholders — students, parents, faculty, staff and the community we serve — feel as if they belong in our spaces, in our decision making and in our instruction,” Gratto said. “DEIB is important in our district because we want all our students to have the opportunity, the access and the support to be successful in their schools.”
Gratto said the NPCSD’s challenges and goals are not unique to their district.
“It is not a coincidence that we have similar achievement gaps that show up across the county, the state and the nation,” he said. “We all have much work to do in addressing the gaps that emerge based on race/ethnicity, special education status, for LGBTQI students, for English language learners and for students of different genders.”
In the Saugerties Central School District (SCSD), DEI efforts have in part been shaped by committee, including students.
“All humans have inherent dignity and deserve a quality and equitable education,” said SCSD Superintendent Dan Erceg. “Last year the SCSD DEI committee created the framework of what Saugerties believes, but it was when (deputy superintendent of curriculum and instruction) Dr. (Gwendolyn) Roraback began working with the students that the SCSD DEI belief statement seamlessly came together because it was their voice.”
That belief statement is at the core of what drives DEI in the SCSD.
“The Saugerties Central School District believes all humans possess inherent dignity and worth,” reads the statement. “The SCSD is committed to fostering individual identities by creating a safe and supportive environment in which all individuals are seen, heard and valued. The Saugerties CSD will design learning opportunities that build respect, empathy and connections to each other, the community and the world in pursuit of inspiring our students and staff to be agents of positive change for diversity, equity, inclusion and social justice in the world.”
Padalino bristled at the notion that focusing on diversity, equity and inclusion is actually a form of reverse-racism, as some critics of DEI claim.
“First of all, we’ve always been responsive to the experience of the white population,” he said, adding that DEI has many different facets.
“A lot of people want to talk about culturally responsive education or DEI in terms of race,” he said. “Here in Kingston, diversity is a lot of things. It’s race, of course. It’s religion. It’s looking at special education. It’s looking at our LGBTQ+ community…I think that there’s this belief that to give to one takes away from the other, and that’s not true. If we’re spending time working to make sure that students are seeing themselves in the curriculum, it’s not that other students aren’t gaining from that. Because they are.”
Those efforts are also being addressed with the staff as well.
“We are active in providing anti-bias training to teachers and students, culturally responsive education training and support for teachers,” said Gratto. “Most if not all our teachers are already familiar with the NYS Culturally Responsive Sustaining Education Framework and we continue to support deepening that understanding.”
All school buildings in the NPCSD have an equity team, and there is also a districtwide equity team.
“We continue to be active in recruiting more representative members of all those teams and include students, parents, admins, teachers, staff and community members/organizations,” Gratto said. “In regards to more diverse staffing, we are aware that research shows that students do better when they have teachers who share their identities. While we will always hire the most qualified candidates for open positions in our district, we strongly support and seek applications from members of all groups.”
Padalino said diversifying district staff to greater reflect the student population has been challenging, in part because they’re not the only district with a DEI action plan.
“Everyone’s trying to do it,” he said. “One of my big things is always what are we doing to get people of color into the teaching profession? You’re pulling from a pool of only a certain size and we’re all trying to pull from that pool. We have some advantages in Kingston and in other school districts like Kingston because of the diverse population and because of the diverse community, we’re a little bit more of a draw, I would say than in a rural community. But it’s a challenge.”
The KCSD hosts a diverse educators career fair every year, and Armstrong actively recruits people of color to come interview with the district. And there is also an EOC (educators of color) network in the district as well.
“We want to be a welcoming environment here to everyone,” Padalino said. “And we need to be respectful of everyone and treat everyone as the professionals that they are here, as they have a huge responsibility to educate our kids.”
But with the culture wars shifting to DEI, proponents of diversity, equity and inclusion fear lines may be crossed by those who oppose them. Last month, Mohammed Albehadli, the DEI coordinator of public schools in South Portland, Maine, resigned from his post and left the state fearing for his family’s safety after receiving a threatening letter that contained racist epithets. South Portland Superintendent Timothy Matheney described the letter as “the most vile email message I have seen in my 35 years in education,” but pledged that the district remained focused on DEI.
The same is true locally, with support from the New York State Education Department. Thus far, as with previous culture war issues like book bans, critical race theory and LGBTQ+ rights, the DEI pushback hasn’t really hit the Hudson Valley.
“We feel the members of our district are very supportive of our efforts,” Gratto said.
Padalino agreed, though he said there has been “a little bit (of flak), but not a lot.”
“The Kingston community is very progressive,” Padalino said. “I think it’s very accepting and understanding of the value of diversity that we have in this whole community.
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