Leadership for Equity and Excellence

"It brings into focus the many aspects of equity and equality in one source. It makes an excellent base for some meaningful discussion of these issues by those working with aspiring educator leaders, as well as those already in the field."
Deborah A. Drugan, Principal
General John J. Stefanik Elementary School, Chicopee, MA

Do you dream of success for every student? Do you dream of raising achievement for each and every child to meet the requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act? Historically, underserved students—children of color, children from low-income families, English language learners—all deserve to live this dream. Creating an equitable learning environment in which all students thrive is possible—with this guide you can turn dreams into reality for your school.

Leadership for Equity and Excellence encourages school leaders and teachers to develop creative strategies for student advancement using tools such as accountability, equity audits, and proactive redundancy. Scheurich and Skrla demonstrate how deeply held beliefs manifest as biases, preventing educators from unlocking their students' potential. The authors also examine the U.S. education achievement gap, and suggest several concepts for overcoming this gap, such as:

• Eliminating "can't" from your vocabulary
• Using creativity, perseverance, and persistence
• Envisioning educators as civil rights workers
• Moving beyond harmful, but entrenched, biases
• Understanding the cultures and backgrounds of each student

Children of color excelling in school . . . children from low-income homes thriving academically . . . classrooms, communities, and even a nation of people becoming truly equal—this is the living dream of today's educators.

• Equity is a perennial topic, but with the changing demographics of the U.S., the topic is receiving tremendous attention and fast becoming a "hot topic."
• The Bush administration is focusing on accountability, as well as the field of education, and the accountability framework for this book support that focus.
• Both authors have been exceptionally visible in this area, presenting frequently at UCEA, AERA, NCPEA, AND AASA, and have published several journal articles leading up to this book (including a guest-edited volume of EUS). I began discussing the project with them almost three years ago.
• Only equity book to take a districtwide approach, with a concentrated focus on accountability and achievement.
• Unique author-created Equity and Excellence Audit tool is included.