Surrey Board of Education unanimously approves initiatives focused on equity and anti-racism
At the Sept. 14 public board meeting, the Surrey Board of Education unanimously approved a motion on three initiatives focused on equity and anti-racism.
“As a school district, we are committed to learning, growth, and continuous improvement,” said Laurie Larsen, Chair of the Surrey Board of Education. “Our district has clear policies on creating safe and caring environments for our staff and students. But we also we recognize that there is more work needed. These recommendations are an important first step and provide a foundation for building a more equitable school district.”
The three initiatives were put forth by Superintendent Mark Pearmain for the board’s consideration and were informed and guided by the expertise of the district’s Racial Equity Advisory committee, and stem from an environmental scan that was commissioned by the board to gather input on racism and the lived experiences of IBPOC members of our school communities. An early draft of this environmental scan was shared publicly in November 2021 and was finalized this summer.
The three initiatives approved by the board are:
- Finalize and publicly post the environmental scans and committee recommendations
There are two scans – one on the district, and a detailed scan of one school. Queen Elizabeth Secondary was selected at the request of the school’s administration team. The district report and QE report, along with committee recommendations are now finalized and available publicly.
- Create a new racial equity department
In the coming weeks we will establish a department and begin recruitment for a director of racial equity. The board has allocated appropriate budget to support the new department, including hiring two helping teachers and administrative support.
- Develop a five-year racial equity plan
By June 2023, we will present a 5-year plan outlining how the district will begin to strategically address racial equity, taking into consideration the recommendations provided in the reports as a roadmap.
“We reached out to an outside organization in early 2021 to gather the lived experiences of our community members,” said Larsen. “This work was critical in providing a starting point for us to strengthen our anti-racism efforts and ultimately create a safer and more welcoming environment for our staff, students and their families.”
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