Communities of Practice (CoP)
Connect as leaders. Grow expertise.
Bring justice to education.
Participant Ariana Melton from City Language Immersion Charter engages with her group during the in-person CoP session on anti-racist curriculum (Jan 2020)
How members describe Communities of Practice:
Video by KimberLee Webber | TalkOakland.org
We know that DCSC members are developing the tools, best practices, and habits to truly bring equity and inclusion to diverse student populations. We believe that a peer-to-peer learning model like Communities of Practice (CoP) is exactly what a coalition like ours needs to leverage the skills and expertise within for the benefit of all.
The CoP has definitely been a rewarding, thought provoking and enlightening experience for me. I am still benefiting from the knowledge and relationships built and looking forward to the next CoP.”
Danielle Dufauchard
Principal at Lycée Français de la Nouvelle-Orléans
Meet our facilitators
Get to know the leaders of each Community of Practice group! We’re showcasing a series of blog posts highlighting perspectives from past and present facilitators on why they do the work, and what they’re looking forward to in their collaboration with members. Check back for posts from more facilitators throughout the summer and fall!
Resources for All
Each CoP of education practitioners collaboratively develops a tool for the field of diverse-by-design education. See below for all the work DCSC members and facilitators have shared since the program’s inception.
The purpose is for participants to:
- Connect as leaders across DCSC’s intentionally integrated member schools, so that practitioners can share experiences and build relationships.
- Grow expertise in how they iterate upon best practices of diversity, equity, and inclusion to support all students.
- Bring justice to education through developing tools for the field that disrupt the persisting status quo of racial and social inequality in schools.
Free for Members 2021-2022
Staff from any of DCSC’s active member schools or school networks are eligible to join any group at no cost. Our sign-up deadline for this year has passed, but get in touch to stay in the loop for next year!
CoP Groups for 2021–2022
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Honor, Include, and Serve Multilingual Learners
Kathy Jamil (LIT Consulting LLC)
As the US multilingual population continues to increase, consider how your school could better meet the needs of these students—many of whom include newcomers escaping war or other systemic hardships that affect a child’s well-being.
Get more details
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Make Transformative Parental Empowerment a Reality
Deb Hanmer (Breakthrough Leadership Consulting)
Imagine what real power-sharing could be at your school, beyond checking a box or inviting parents as a tokenized after-thought. Co-learn with parents and strengthen your practice to make change “with” diverse stakeholder communities and not “for” them!
Get more details
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Creating a Brave Community: Designing DEI PD
Jeff Heyck-Williams and Dawnyela Meredith (Two Rivers Public Charter School)
Staff development will only go so far when you’re overly conditioned to prioritize niceness and place blame on others. Tackle school-wide inequities as you help your team build courage to advance racial equity and inclusion.
Get more details
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Social Justice ABDs: Agitate, Build, Disrupt, and De-center
Aaron J. Griffen (Prosperity Educators, LLC)
Any school can tout a mission, vision, or commitment statement. But how could equip a team of educators to intellectually question those statements? Join and develop agitation spaces, disrupt “objectivity,” and lead organizational change to prioritize equity.
Get more details
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Academic Equity through Accelerated Learning
Angelica Jackson (Phoenix International School of the Arts) and Winsome Waite (WP Education Services LLC)
Time to set aside tracking and remediation, and embrace accelerating learning instead! Research confirms it’s the best way for all students to gain critical knowledge and skills. Academic learning is every school’s bread and butter, so let’s innovate together.
Get more details
Key Points of CoP Timeline
Pick a date to learn more
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Deliverable Presentation (1 of 2)
June 1st, 2021
We’ll hear from two of our CoP groups, Got Justice? Creating and Sustaining Equitable School Culture and Trauma-informed Practices to Support ALL Students, on their deliverables. Members will unveil their resource with a broader audience of practitioners, detailing their experiential takeaways and best practices.
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Deliverable Presentation (2 of 2)
June 8th, 2021
We’ll hear from two of our CoP groups, Disrupt Bias in Educator Talent Decisions and Roots ConnectED Anti-Bias Social Justice Institute Follow-up Coaching, on their deliverables. Members will unveil their resource with a broader audience of practitioners, detailing their experiential takeaways and best practices.
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Facilitator Virtual Orientation for 2021-2022
July 15th, 2021
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Participant Sign-up Deadline
October 1st, 2021
Last chance for staff from any DCSC member school to sign up for one of our Communities of Practice!
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CoP Year 3 Kickoff
October 13th, 2021
Virtual kick-off among all CoP groups
3:00 – 4:30 p.m., EST
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November Virtual Group Session
November 10th, 2021
Timing varies depending on CoP group.
Facilitator guides participants in discussing on-site experiences and sharing resources related to the CoP’s content area.
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December Virtual Group Session
December 8th, 2021
Timing varies depending on CoP group.
Facilitator guides participants in discussing on-site experiences and sharing resources related to the CoP’s content area.
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January In-Person Sessions
January 27th, 2022
Intensive deep-dive sessions in Kansas City, MO.
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February Virtual Group Session
February 16th, 2022
Timing varies depending on CoP group.
Facilitator guides participants in discussing on-site experiences and sharing resources related to the CoP’s content area.
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March Virtual Group Session
March 16th, 2022
Timing varies depending on CoP group.
Facilitator guides participants in discussing on-site experiences and sharing resources related to the CoP’s content area.
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April Virtual Group Session
April 13th, 2022
Timing varies depending on CoP group.
Facilitator guides participants in discussing on-site experiences and sharing resources related to the CoP’s content area.
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May Virtual Group Session
May 18th, 2022
Timing varies depending on CoP group.
Facilitator guides participants in discussing on-site experiences and sharing resources related to the CoP’s content area.
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CoP WRAP Party
June 15th, 2022
Wielding Resources As Practitioners! CoP groups present their work for the year and share resources for the field
Program Overview
| Sign ups open to members from June – Sept 2021. We encourage members to join with a group of colleagues to maximize impact at the school site. |
| Free for DCSC members, with additional 20% discount on Annual Convening registration |
Commit to joining all meetings of the CoP:
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| Contribute to a resource for the field that disrupts the persisting status quo of racial and social inequality in schools. This final product may take the form of a webinar, blog, toolkit, podcast, or other modality. |
Left: Facilitator Kelly Wickham Hurst of Crossroads leads her group of participants in discussing anti-racist education (Jan 2020)