Perkiomen Valley School District
Advancing our Mission: An Internal Resource for PV Staff
Edition #2: April 2024
The Mission of the Perkiomen Valley School District is to cultivate an inclusive community of learners empowered to grow intellectually, socially, and emotionally.
An Introduction to this Edition 🧡
Dear Colleagues,
This is the second edition of the quarterly newsletter, Advancing our Mission. This newsletter is designed to be an internal resource for the staff in PV.
April is here and we are in the final stretch of the school year. There are many observances, holidays, and celebrations that are occuring within the next several weeks.
As a foundational resource, guidance from the Anti-Defamation League is being used to guide communications surrounding these topics.
Aligned with the theme Advancing our Mission, did you know…
- April is recognized as Autism Acceptance/Awareness Month. This month has been established to raise awareness about the developmental disorder that affects an individual's normal development of social and communication skills. See the infographic below which highlights ways to foster an inclusive classroom.
- April is also known as Arab American Heritage Month. The United States is home to over 3.5 million Arab Americans. During this month, we recognize Arab American heritage and culture and pay tribute to the contributions of Arab Americans and Arabic-speaking Americans.
- April is also known as Genocide Awareness Month. This month is designated as a time to remember and raise awareness about the atrocities committed in the past and present. The purpose of this month is to educate people about genocide, encourage them to take action to prevent genocide from happening again, and remember those who have been impacted by these atrocities.
- April is also known as National Poetry Month. This month celebrates poets’ integral role in our culture and remind us that poetry matters. Over the years, it has become the largest literary celebration in the world, with tens of millions of readers, students, K–12 teachers, librarians, booksellers, literary events curators, publishers, families, and poets, marking poetry’s important place in our lives. There are digital resources linked below.
- April 10: Eid al-Fitr: With the end of Ramadan on April 9, the following day marks the first day of Eid Al-Fitr. Muslims end the month of Ramadan with the celebration of Eid Al-Fitr, one of the two celebratory holidays in the Islamic faith. Eid Al-Fitr is a time when Muslims come together in prayer, and also celebrate completing Ramadan.
- April 12: The Day of Silence. This is a student-led movement in which students take a daylong vow of silence to protest the actual silencing of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender, and queer/questioning (LGBTQ) students and those who support them due to bias and harassment. The Day of Silence brings awareness and illustrates to the schools and the colleges how intimidation, name-calling, and general bullying have a silencing effect. Please see the resource linked below for more information.
- Passover (Pesach): Commemorates the emancipation of the Israelites from slavery in ancient Egypt. Passover begins before sundown on Monday, April 22, 2024, and ends after nightfall on April 30, 2024. Pesach is observed by avoiding leaven, and highlighted by the Seder meals that include four cups of wine, eating matzah and bitter herbs, and retelling the story of the Exodus. The famous spiritual "Let My People Go" comes from the story of Passover told in the section of Exodus. The first two nights of Passover are typically when most Jewish families celebrate the Seder meal. Participating in the Sedar can involve travel and much preparation. The first two Seders this year are on Monday, April 22nd, and Tuesday, April 23rd. Teachers should be cognizant that students who observe these two nights may need extra time to finish assignments given without advanced notice. For more info, chabad.org is an excellent website. (Credit to Ira Gelman, Ph.D)
As a reminder, it’s okay to teach about religious holidays, as long as you are being inclusive, equitable, objective, and accurate in your instruction. It’s NOT okay to celebrate religious holidays – this would be unconstitutional. This is a critical distinction and schools must not cross this line.
Enjoy reading this edition. Feedback is always welcomed.
Educationally Yours,
Keya Champagne-Lee, Ed.D.
Supervisor of Equity and Student Services
Coffee/Cocoa and Conversations
The second round of Coffee/Cocoa and Conversations with each school building is coming to a close (South ES is on Tuesday of next week). For those who attended, THANK YOU for your willingness to lean in and engage in dialogue.
Here are the session takeaways and links to a few resources:
- Bias is a natural human tendency; people are biased because that is how we are hardwired.
- It's really hard to acknowledge personal bias.
- Bias can give us blind spots that make it harder to see someone else's point of view.
Action Steps: A few things that you can do!
- Self-Exploration: Take Harvard's Implicit Association Test. You can test yourself for over a dozen different biases, including those involving race, skin tone, weight, age, and disability. Harvard's Implicit Association Tests
- How do you feel about the results?
- What did you learn about yourself?
- What changes, if any, does it motivate you to make?
Video Resources (peanut butter and jelly analogy and others)
- Commit to life-long learning: Each individual has the capacity to overcome personal biases through ongoing, lifelong dedication. Understanding and acknowledging one's biases is essential to overcoming them. Overcoming bias entails developing automatic unbiased responses like breathing or your heartbeat. You no longer have to force it into consciousness as it becomes the default setting.
- Build authentic relationships across differences. Relationships with staff and students alike are critical. Human differences can create divisions and the best way to minimize this impact is to develop real relationships
- Let students tell you their story
- Practice active listening
- Check-in with others, reflect, and refine
Climate Task Force
Upcoming Climate Task Force Meetings
In January, all stakeholders were invited to participate in a Climate Survey. With the collected data now available, we have established a Climate Task Force. The Task Force will be dedicated to thoroughly analyzing the data and devising actionable steps forward. There are 29 individuals who have expressed interest in participating in the Climate Task Force. This group is comprised of teachers, administrators, counselors, school security, Board members, parents, instructional coaches, and one student representative. The Task Force will be meeting on:
- Tuesday, April 23 from 3:30-5:00 p.m.
- Thursday, May 2 from 5:00-6:30 p.m.
We look forward to working together to continue fostering a nurturing, safe, and inclusive environment for all members of our community.
Listening Campaign
Student Voice
The Listening Campaign has concluded at the Middle Level and has now transitioned to the Elementary and High School levels.
Student voice is truly at the center of Equity work. As such, it's critical to develop a deeper sense of their lived experiences. In the book Street Data by Safir and Dugan, the authors express the importance of deep listening. Equity transformation involves seeking root causes and not quick fixes. Deep listening is one way to ensure that student voice is uplifted and will help lead us towards transformation. During these Listening Sessions with select student groups, I will be gathering student perceptions regarding their experiences within our schools. This anecdotal data collected will be analyzed to identify themes and trends.
Social-Emotional Learning Competence Areas
The CASEL 5 🧡💛💚💙🤎
During a recent SEL training at MS West, participants were provided with this infographic that details the five core social-emotional learning competence areas. Fostering an atmosphere of inclusion, acceptance, safety, and belonging requires a commitment to embracing the needs of the whole child. These 5 competence areas reflect critical life skills that we must help all students to develop. For more information regarding these competencies, please visit the CASEL website.
Some Inspiration!!!!
Need Help? Have Questions? Want to Connect?
Please feel welcome to reach out to me if you'd like to connect:
- Keya's Business Cell Phone: (267) 991-2968
- Keya's Office Phone: (610) 489-8506, ext. 1132
- Keya's Email: kchampagne-lee@pvsd.org