![[Students at Batavia High School walk out at noon Wednesday, Feb. 21, to mark the school shooting in Florida a week ago.]
Carol Smith, spokeswoman for St. Charles District 303, said the principals sent messages to teachers earlier today to say “this is happening.”
“And if your students want to walk out, they can do that at noon," she said. "They had supervision outside and came back in after 17 minutes.”
Smith and other school districts’ officials said the students participating in the walkout would not be disciplined, and that students are planning a similar walkout to protest gun violence during a national event set for March 14.
“At St. Charles East, student leaders have been in discussions with the principal about the day and making it meaningful for students,” Smith said. ‘What does this mean and how can it be a learning experience?”
The Women’s March organizers have set up the national March 14 event and two students at North have signed up for that, Smith said.](https://www.shawlocal.com/resizer/vkf4E9hZp5Y1pXnVxbqv0WlJ07U=/800x0/filters:format(jpg):quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/shawmedia/AKC6AD45R5LS6TQ3NUDUHESD3U.jpg)
An equity committee comprised of students, teachers and parents in Batavia School District 101 is scheduled to meet Thursday to discuss options for ways district administrators can improve diversity, equity and inclusion efforts in their schools.
Students, parents and teachers voiced their concerns about the district’s approach to DEI issues during the public comment portion of the April 19 school board meeting.
“In recent board meetings, we’ve heard from students begging our administration to do something about the racist, transphobic and homophobic issues that plague our district,” Batavia High School English teacher Amber Jirsa said. “We have created somewhat of an equity plan, but this plan forgets about the students who need help right now.”
Jirsa said that she and other Batavia teachers raised concerns about racist and homophobic incidents during the 2021-2022 school year in an email sent to the school board.
“In February we had 50 teachers email our board questions related to equity,” Jirsa said. “We never received a response.”
However, an email exchange obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request between Brad Newkirk, chief academic officer in the district, and a teacher who signed the letter, showed that the district did ask the group to meet with senior district management about the DEI concerns.
In the letter to administration, which the Kane County Chronicle also obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request, teachers suggested multiple DEI improvements such as in-class discussions and the hiring of a full-time diversity and equity expert.
The district outlined its equity plan during the Feb. 22 school board meeting. The plan includes the creation of a unified equity statement for the district, as well as the creation of the equity committee, which includes Jirsa.
“We begin on Thursday a new committee with the district. I’m very happy to be on that committee,” said Batavia High School teacher and equity committee member Matt Holm. “But I want to stress as I go into that, those two things; we need a deep self-evaluation of our district, of our staff. We need the training that goes with that. And while we’re doing that, we need to realize there are students that feel like they don’t belong [and] they don’t have support.”
The district’s plan was based on data collected from 150 students and staff members through surveys and focus groups this school year.
“I’m grateful for the opportunity I had to be part of that important work,” said Martin Beirne, a Batavia High School student Martin Beirne who helped present the committee’s findings at the Feb. 22 school board meeting. “That presentation was one of data and conclusions. It’s now in the board’s hands as to what to do with them and how to take action.”
Some teachers speaking at the meeting acknowledged the progress made by the plan, but said that some requests have yet to be acknowledged.
“A student spoke in December requesting resources for trans students on our website,” Batavia High School teacher Molly Jackson-Schultz said. “While the website has been updated with a large equity plan for the district, it has not yet been updated with the information that they requested.”
Superintendent Lisa Hichens said that changes to the district’s website and other equity improvements will be made throughout the coming year.
“When the team came and presented in February, we gave the list of things we acted on this year, things that we have yet to do this year, and then our future steps for future years,” Hichens said. “We’ll be able to give you more details in May because the team that is making those decisions, they meet this Thursday.”
“They have two action items,” Hichens said. “One is to deliver an action plan, and the second would be to talk about the role of that committee moving forward.”