Austin ISD - Announcement: District Provides Equity Assessment Update

Austin TX

28 September, 2021

10:58 AM

Description

Press release from Austin ISD - Announcement: September 27, 2021 By Eduardo Villa Ausitn ISD Board of Trustees could vote to move forward with an equity assessment as early as Oct. 28, according to an update provided at last week's meeting. Why it matters: The district approved its budget calendar for the upcoming school year despite little progress on an equity assessment that the community has called for. Community members expressed their frustration during community meetings and the Sept. 23 Regular Board Meeting. The big picture: Originally, the plan was for the Equity Subcommittee, which is made up mostly of community members, to draft the request for proposals, which goes to potential vendors describing the work. Now the committee is asking Austin ISD to take the reins on the request for proposal. What the board could vote on by Oct. 28  is a timeline and what would be included in an equity assessment. If approved, work on the assessment could begin as soon as April 2022. Yes, but: If the equity assessment doesn't begin till April, it would "be too late to truly inform the budget," Trustee Arati Singh stated.  While the equity assessment may not be ready for the budgeting process, equity will continue to be a factor during the development, said Superintendent Stephanie S. Elizalde. What's next: The Equity Office has also worked on an Equity Action Plan which will be released in the coming weeks.  This press release was produced by Austin ISD - Announcement. The views expressed here are the author's own.