District 202 Students Plan Rally To Voice Concerns Over Diversity

Plainfield IL

22 April, 2021

2:31 PM

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PLAINFIELD, IL — Ryan Tisdale has been a student within District 202 for his entire educational career but is still struck by the fact that he didn't see a teacher that looked like him until his freshman year at Plainfield North High School. Tisdale, who is Black, acknowledges that he had an African American female teacher in the first grade, but that it wasn't until his first year of high school before he had teacher who was an African American male. Now, as Tisdale is preparing to graduate from high school next month, he is among District 202 students who are frustrated by the lack of diversity among the staff and administration within the Plainfield school district. Tisdale, along with others, will participate in a peaceful rally that is scheduled to take place Monday evening at the district office. Tisdale hopes the event will amplify the voices of students who believe there should be more people with whom students of color and that are part of the LGBTQ community can identify. The rally is scheduled to begin at 5 p.m. and will take place at 15732 S. Howard St. in Plainfield. Face-coverings and social distancing guidelines will be required and followed. "(The lack of diversity) is a really big concern, especially when you don't see teachers that are people of color along with other people in the district," Tisdale told Patch on Thursday. "And then, there's the district's tone about diversity." Despite the district releasing a diversity statement last year, Tisdale characterizes school officials' approach to diversity as a subject that is often swept under the rug. Among Tisdale's biggest frustration is a delay in getting a student survey distributed about diversity. Tisdale, who is the founder of the student organization, Change Advocates, said students went to the district in October and petitioned administrators to survey students on matters of diversity. As of now, that survey has yet to be released, Tisdale said, adding that the ongoing coronavirus pandemic and other issues have delayed its release. To him, it seems the district's approach is clear. "It's like, let's talk about the (diversity) issue, but let's tip-toe around to find solutions," Tisdale said. According to the District 202 website, about 49 percent of the district's student population is diverse ethnically. While 51.9 percent of the district's 25,133 students are white, 11.8 percent are Black, 24.7 percent are Hispanic/Latino, 7 percent are Asian, 4.3 percent are multi-racial, and less than 1 p-percent are American Indian and Native Hawaiian or represent other Pacific heritage. That compares to the 1990-91 school year when the district only had 3,324 students – 96.4 percent of which were white. The district's diversity statement reads: "Plainfield District 202 is committed to building an equitable and inclusive educational community. Our district welcomes diversity in all of its many dimensions. We value students, families, and staff of varied backgrounds and encourage them to share their unique gifts to cultivate a rich educational experience. We are dedicated to creating a learning environment that exposes students to the value of differences, broadens their perspectives, and prepares them to shape the world." Yet, in many cases, Tisdale said that students who are not white, feel disenfranchised by the district's attitude about diversity. "I would definitely say it's a struggle for students who identify as other things, LGBT especially or even people of color because we don't have someone that we can look up to that looks like us unlike the majority of the people," Tisdale said. He added: "Who wants to go into a building everyday where you see barely any students that look like you and especially teachers that are teaching the information? When it comes to teachers only being a majority one race, there's limited perspective on things that are not shared in the classroom." Tisdale feels like the district has done the "bare minimum" to address diversity issues, which he said are hardly discussed even after George Floyd was killed at the hands of former Minneapolis Police officer Derek Chauvin, who was convicted on three counts earlier this week. Tisdale and other students have met with members of the district's Cultural Competency Committee to address students concerns over a lack of diversity. Tisdale has worked directly with assistant superintendent Glenn Wood on these matters, but after being told that the student survey would be released on April 9, it still has not been distributed among students. In an email to Patch Thursday afternoon, Wood wrote that the district is very proud of our work related to Cultural Competency the past 15 years. According to Wood, the district has six goals connected to personnel, community relations, curriculum and resources, student voice, discipline and building committee leadership and oversight. "The recruiting, hiring, and retention of staff that mirrors our student and community population in the area of personnel has been a top goal of ours for years," Wood wrote in the email. "The competition among school districts across the country is fierce for diverse candidates and even though we have made progress, it is still an area for growth." Wood said the district will give a survey to students prior to the end of this school year. Administrators' priority has been to bring back over 15,000 students safely the past few weeks. All other initiatives have been secondary, he said. Despite the changes the district has committed to, Tisdale hopes Monday's rally will help to drive change and to make sure the district officials hear student voices that Tisdale and others say often go unnoticed. "We have lots of stuff to say – whether it's something the district wants to hear or not – it's time to start listening to students so we can change and make things better for them and start to get (student) perspective on things," Tisdale said.