ANSWER:

The role of the proposed Equity Office would be similar to the current role of the Equity Initiatives Unit. It would be accountable for developing, implementing, and monitoring systemwide equity policies, practices, and strategies to ensure the acceleration of academic performance for Latino and African American students to meet or exceed grade-level benchmarks. The office would work collaboratively with staff, government and private agencies, and community stakeholders to ensure diverse perspectives are engaged in the key work of the system.

This work currently is being done under the direction of the Equity Initiatives Unit within the Office of School Support and Improvement. By establishing an office, the work would exist under the direction of an associate superintendent rather than a director.

If supported, this proposal could be achieved either by changing the director position to a higher-level position or by increasing the current staffing with a 1.0 FTE associate superintendent position, a 1.0 FTE administrative assistant position, and a 1.0 FTE administrative services manager I position. The proposed cost for this enhancement is $408,958 including employee benefits.