Educational Equity Statement

Aligned with its mission and beliefs, WASA is committed to leading, serving, and supporting current and aspiring leaders to create systems and equitable learning environments where each and every student can learn and achieve their educational goals and aspirations.

Grounded in the following definitions, Educational Equity is embraced as the potent combination of:
… cultural competency: the knowledge of student cultural histories and contexts, as well as family norms and values in different cultures; knowledge and skills in accessing community resources and community and parent outreach; and skills in adapting instruction to students' experiences and identifying cultural contexts for individual students.

… diversity: the range of human differences within a given setting, collective, or group based on multiple factors, including but not limited to, race, ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability status, age, educational status, religion, geography, primary language, culture, and other characteristics, beliefs, and experiences.

… equity: the condition that would be achieved if one’s group membership, no longer predicted, in a statistical sense, how one fares. Equity is the outcome, not just access to opportunity.

… inclusion: the intentional actions that create and sustain belonging, safety, respect, and attention to individual needs and backgrounds to ensure all students fully engage in available activities and opportunities.

Therefore, WASA believes that Educational Equity, for each and every student, will be attained when barriers are removed throughout the system, ensuring equal access and opportunity for students to achieve successful outcomes. WASA will commit to providing vision, leadership, and support to district leaders as they take action to eradicate gaps that are a result of systemic inequities in our schools.

This statement will inform WASA’s decision-making and future actions as it exerts its voice and influence in the areas of leadership, trust, and advocacy.

Approved by the WASA Board of Directors (4/18/22)

Download the statement here.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why an Educational Equity Statement?

WASA has long been a staunch advocate for educational equity. Unfortunately, educational equity has not been achieved in our schools. The group membership of a student continues to be a predictor, in a statistical sense, for how one fares. In the wake of the pandemic, these inequities were even more fully exposed in the community and in our schools. Consequently, WASA leaders believe the time has come to develop a statement that better captures the association’s beliefs and aspirations to help achieve equity in our schools and districts. This statement was generated by district leaders, representing school districts of varying sizes from rural, urban, and suburban school districts.

The Educational Equity Statement is aligned with WASA’s overall mission and beliefs, employing clear and specific language that establishes and reinforces justification for this important work. The Educational Equity Statement will ensure that all members are aware of WASA’s commitment to educational equity.

It is our hope that the statement will encourage, support, and inspire school district leaders in their work to advance educational equity. And finally, the statement communicates the importance of educational equity and WASA’s commitment to it—for ALL to see.

What was the genesis of WASA’s Educational Equity Statement?

Executive Director Joel Aune first began talking with the WASA Board of Directors about the development of a position statement for the association in June, 2020. Similar to statements or policy adopted by some school districts, this statement would clearly articulate WASA’s stance on educational equity, diversity, and inclusion as a professional association. This conversation with the Board continued over the ensuing 15 months. During the Board meeting in September 2021, Executive Director Aune, in consultation with President Aaron Leavell, shared with the Board his recommendation that it time to move forward with this work.

How was WASA’s Educational Equity Statement created?

An Ad Hoc Committee was convened by Executive Director Aune, the purpose of which was to, “Provide advisement toward the development of a clear position statement for WASA regarding Educational Equity.”

The committee was charged to develop a statement for the board’s consideration that would consider diversity, equity, cultural competency, and inclusion; keep students at the core; advance WASA’s mission and beliefs with fidelity; have future use as a lens for decision-making; and be actionable.

Who was involved in the creation of WASA’s Educational Equity statement?

WASA’s Ad Hoc Committee was specifically designed to be a comprehensive, diverse group of WASA leaders. The Committee was comprised of 18 school district leaders from across the entire state. The Committee’s composition reflected the WASA membership with representatives bringing forth a variety of perspectives from different size districts, regions, and communities.

They were charged with creating a statement that provided a clear position for WASA regarding educational equity and: consider diversity, equity, cultural competency, and inclusion; keep students at the core; reflect the membership; advance WASA’s mission and beliefs with fidelity; have future use as a lens for decision-making; and be actionable.

The Committee met on multiple occasions, beginning in December 2021. They finalized their recommendation for the WASA Board with an enthusiastic and unanimous vote on March 4.

These members included:

Balderas, Gustavo Superintendent Edmonds
Bethman, Jennifer** Assistant Supt. Bethel
Cadero-Smith, Lisa Assistant Supt. Yelm
Callison, Ginger Assistant Supt. Snoqualmie Valley
Carey, Shaun** Superintendent Enumclaw
Dunn, Mike Superintendent ESD 101
Elizondo, Robert Superintendent Touchet
Greene, Trevor Superintendent Yakima
Havens, Heather Assistant Supt. Mead
Hong, Eric Assistant Supt. Federal Way
Leavell, Aaron** Superintendent Bremerton WASA President
Pray, Sunshine Superintendent Soap Lake
Seawright, Mary Superintendent Mt Baker
Strom, Henry** Superintendent Grandview
Templeton, Mary Superintendent Washougal
Villarreal, Mike Superintendent Hoquiam
Vivanco, Ismael Superintendent Mt Vernon
Whitney, Michelle** Superintendent Pasco WASA President-elect
Aune, Joel Executive Director WASA
**WASA Board Members

Listeners/Observers
Nelson, Mike Assistant Exec. Dir. WASA
Steele, Dan Assistant Exec. Dir. WASA
Wolf, Andy Assistant Exec. Dir. WASA
Troiani, Isabella Communications WASA

Paroff, Helene Process Facilitator

What was the Board’s role in the creation of WASA’s Educational Equity statement?

In addition to charging the Committee, five Board members sat on the committee and actively participated in the creation of the Educational Equity Statement. The full WASA Board reviewed and adopted the Educational Equity Statement during their meeting on April 18, 2022.

What’s next?

This can be answered by language in the WASA Educational Equity Statement itself, “WASA believes that Educational Equity, for each and every student, will be attained when barriers are removed throughout the system, ensuring equal access and opportunity for students to achieve successful outcomes. WASA will commit to providing vision, leadership, and support to district leaders as they take action to eradicate gaps that are a result of systemic inequities in our schools. This statement will inform WASA’s decision-making and future actions as it exerts its voice and influence in the areas of leadership, trust, and advocacy.”

Following the Board meeting, WASA’s annual Leaders Workshop was held on April 19. The full-day workshop, attended by WASA Board members, Region Presidents and Presidents-Elect, and Ad Hoc Committee members, focused upon development of goals and priorities for WASA in 2022–23. President-elect Michelle Whitney led and facilitated this discussion, the foundation of which was the recently adopted WASA Educational Equity Statement.

In the coming weeks and months, WASA’s Educational Equity Statement will be prominent in our communications and broadly disseminated to members, partners, legislators, and the community at-large. In the months and years to come, the Board and WASA Executive Team will utilize the statement to inform planning and center the work of the association.

How will this impact WASA’s work?

The Executive Team has already begun implementing educational equity in the Association’s actions, which can be seen in our professional learning resources, storehouse resources on equity, external communications, legislative advocacy, and member support. WASA stands ready to serve, support, and provide leadership to its members as they build and further strengthen systems and equitable learning environments where every student can learn and achieve their educational goals and aspirations.

How will this impact WASA’s advocacy efforts in Olympia?

While WASA has long held the belief that our mission is intertwined with an emphasis on equity for all students, WASA will use its new equity statement to inform and prioritize the development of its legislative efforts in Olympia and at the federal level.

Are districts required to use this statement?

No, there is no requirement for school district superintendents and other school district leaders to use this statement in their districts. However, the statement is available to use as a guide in their own equity discussions at the district or region level.

How do you envision superintendents using this statement in their districts?

WASA believes that when educational equity is attained, all students can be successful and achieve their full potentials. This means eliminating barriers and providing students with the resources they need to graduate and be successful in their post-graduate lives. WASA’s educational equity statement is in place and available for superintendents to reflect on the work happening in their own districts to remove barriers and better align teaching and learning to ensure all students develop to their full academic and social potentials.

How will this impact the WASA staff?

The Executive Team will use the statement to inform their words, actions, priorities, and the work of the association. The WASA staff, both executives and support personnel, has been engaged in equity learning and discussions for the past two years.

Questions

If you have any further questions, please contact WASA Executive Director, Joel Aune, at jaune@wasa-oly.org.

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