“IT’S GOING TO TAKE A VILLAGE”: INCLUSIVE EQUITY PAUSES FOR SYSTEM LEADERS

Literacy is a critical lever for social and political engagement; so critical that its access was oft barred from historically oppressed and marginalized student groups such as Black students, Students with Disabilities and English Language Learners through systemically inequitable policies and practices. Strategic action planning has the potential to either advance equity or be an oppressive force that further gatekeeps access to literacy. Gaps in how system leaders plan for specific groups of students – through the design of resources, procurement of materials, and provision of supports – can surely be counted as a leading factor for reduced effectiveness in instructional implementation. System leaders aiming to increase literacy proficiency and reduce risk for later reading disability for historically oppressed student groups must plan to eliminate instructional opportunity gaps. Equity-focused systemic transformation – with all its complexities and interrelationships – compels that leaders develop inclusive conditions so that diverse experiences and expertise are invited to the planning table. Framed as an intervention, this study examined inclusive equity pauses as a method for improving system leaders’ strategic planning practices and identifying core habits of mind and practices necessary for leaders to be catalysts of equity focused systemic transformation. Implications from the study’s findings suggest leaders engage in deep equity work to revise structures that unintentionally exclude stakeholders and reduce the degree of equity in strategic initiatives. Applying principles of Critical Race Theory can ensure that system leaders are more effective at closing instructional opportunity gaps for every student.