Equity & Anti-Racist Stance

The Coalition of Oregon School Administrators (COSA) is a coalition of K-12 education leaders committed to equity and the success of every Oregon student and staff member. 

To that end, we will develop and support K-12 education leaders in:

• Ensuring that race is central to our equity work.  It is our belief and experience that going deep and staying focused on race supports each of us in building our will, skill, and courage to see, and interrupt, systemic barriers in our schools and districts not only around race, but all forms of inequities and oppression.
• Transforming our systems and institutions by crafting, and implementing, anti-racist policies, budgets, programs, and practices that translate into resource allocation, education rigor, and opportunities for historically and currently marginalized students and staff inclusive of race, ethnicity, culture, family economics, mobility, language, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, or initial proficiencies.
• Supporting districts and education service districts to recruit, hire, support, develop, promote, and retain staff (classified, certified, and administrative) who reflect the diversity of the students in our state.
• Cultivating the unique gifts, talents, and interests of every Oregon student so that success and failure are no longer predicted nor predetermined by race, ethnicity, culture, family economics, mobility, language, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, or initial proficiencies.

Today and every day, COSA commits to:
 
Being student-centered by ...

• Supporting K-12 education leaders in creating an inclusive and barrier-free environment where each student will have access to a high-quality education and can follow their own path in reaching their full potential.
• Partnering with, and centering, students and equity, particularly our students who are members of historically and currently marginalized groups, as we develop our statewide legislative priorities, professional development, and programming and events.
• Continuing to examine how current policies, budgets, programs and practices impact Oregon students, especially among our students who are members of historically and currently marginalized groups; and work actively to disrupt and dismantle institutionalized racism in our systems and institutions that perpetuate inequities.

 Supporting and diversifying our membership by...

• Embracing and affirming the identity of each COSA member inclusive of race, ethnicity, mobility, language, marital status, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability and religion. Listening to our members, and knowing that each member matters.  Every single one of them.
• Identifying and removing systemic barriers in order to elevate, recruit, hire, retain, support, and promote diverse school and district leaders, so that the demographic makeup of our leaders more closely reflects our students.
• Working with COSA members and partners to create the capacity in every school district and education service district to demonstrate unequivocal support for the success of all K-12 leaders and the commitment to eradicating systemic and institutional barriers, so that leadership development, selection, retention, support, promotion, and success will not be predicted, or predetermined by the status quo. This includes taking intentional action to name and dismantle systems that have oppressed students and staff who are members of historically and currently marginalized groups.
• Fostering an inclusive and barrier-free environment in all COSA programs, practices, events and activities so that everyone fully benefits. Upholding safety, respect and care in each of our spaces.
• Supporting leaders in becoming leaders of equity in instruction for their districts and schools.

 Developing as an organization by... 

• Hiring a COSA workforce that reflects the diversity of our membership and the students we serve.
• Providing training for COSA staff and leaders in applying our Equity & Anti-Racist Stance and Lens to build staff and leadership capacity; plan and organize programs; and allocate staffing and resources.
• Practicing our Equity & Anti-Racist Stance and Lens throughout our work, and further developing additional resources to support the practice of our Equity & Anti-Racist Stance and Lens. 
• Making sustainable decisions that align with our mission and vision.

Equity & Anti-Racist Lens
 
The purpose of COSA’s equity and anti-racist stance is to clearly articulate the shared goals we have for K-12 and ESD leaders throughout Oregon and the students, staff, schools, and districts they serve. By utilizing an equity and anti-racist lens, COSA aims to provide a filter and protocol for ensuring that our resource allocation, partnerships, initiatives, and events align with our mission, vision, and Equity and Anti-Racist Stance. The following questions will be utilized when making critical decisions.
 

1. Does the decision/initiative/investment align with our mission, vision, and Equity and Anti-Racist Stance?
2. What is the purpose and what are we trying to achieve with this decision/initiative/investment?
3. How does the decision/initiative/investment address systemic barriers in education that affect students/staff/administrators who are members of groups who have experienced historical marginalization?
   1. Who does this decision/initiative/investment affect both positively and negatively?
   2. How have stakeholders, particularly those who have experienced historical marginalization, been meaningfully engaged in the process and development of said decision/initiative/investment?
   3. Are we identifying and addressing the components of systemic oppression that may be at play in, or are contributing to, the situation?
4. Does the decision/initiative/investment being made ignore or worsen existing disparities or produce other unintended consequences, especially for people of color and other groups who have experienced historical marginalization?
5. What would it take for this decision/initiative/investment to be both sustainable and scalable?

(adopted June 23, 2021)