Lynbrook High School alumni push for racism education

Posted

In the months since George Floyd’s death and the aftermath of the Jacob Blake shooting,, a nationwide movement has emerged to combat systemic racism in law enforcement, business and education. A group of Lynbrook High School alumni has united to further the cause in their community, specifically the school district, which they said could make improvements in teaching anti-racism principles and incorporating di-verse teaching methods into the curriculum.

The group, called Lynbrook Owls Fighting for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, drafted a 28-page proposal addressed to the school administration and Board of Education encompassing the changes it hopes to see made in the schools. Its three chief areas of discussion are creating a diverse, equitable and inclusive curriculum; assembling a diverse teaching and professional staff; and implementing anti-racist and anti-bias professional development programs.

The letter includes several sources of data, quotations from other alumni to support the group’s claims and what they believe are achievable goals for the future of Lynbrook public schools.

“This proposal is meant to take Lynbrook, something that we hold beloved, and improve it in ways we think would benefit all,” said Vivek Shah, a member of the alumni group’s Leadership Board.

In return, the group is asking for four things from the administration: a written response from Superintendent Dr. Melissa Burak and the school board committing Lynbrook to becoming intentionally anti-racist; a partnership among a diverse group of community members and the board’s Diversity Committee; a public document detailing actions that the committee will take to reform the schools; and a community meeting to present the proposal before the start of the 2020-21 academic year.

Burak has since issued a written “Response to the National Conversation on Diversity,” which was read aloud by Board President William Belmont at August’s meeting and is now available on the district website. She agreed with the alumni, noting the need for an anti-racist curriculum, while explaining that Lynbrook has worked to include diverse authors and themes in literature lessons.

Burak added that the Guidance Department sent resources to students after the death of George Floyd, aiming to assist families with difficult conversations about racism and to help students understand the tumultuous events unfolding across the United States.

In early July, the board developed its goals for the upcoming year, specifically focusing attention on the need to improve diversity, inclusion and equity. A districtwide Diversity Council will be established to organize cultural celebrations and training for administrators to improve conversations on race.

According to Burak, the district has also connected with the Anti-Racism Project, an organization that “seeks to educate participants about how institutionalized racism, internalized racism and white privilege feed oppression,” as stated on its website.

“As much needs to evolve in society in general, we understand that the schools need to evolve as well,” Burak said. “We are grateful for the voices uncovering and sharing their experiences. We are listening and will continue to research best practices and to develop our curriculum as it best suits the needs of our Lynbrook students.” 

Members of the alumni group said they received an “overwhelmingly positive” response to their posts on Instagram and Facebook. The proposal and a petition to garner community support have been posted alongside a myriad of personal anecdotes shared by current and past Lynbrook students, entailing their encounters with racism and bias in the schools. The petition has nearly 600 signatures, and there are about 130 stories shared so far, with new ones flooding the account every day.

While the majority of responses have been positive, the group still receives negative ones as well. Emma Duncliffe, a member of the alumni Leadership Board, said she received “death threats and personal attacks” via social media.

“We were so incredibly careful with our word choice, research and data, but people automatically assume the tone of the proposal, without reading it, and react by spreading false information about our intentions,” said Kiran Kapoor, another member of the alumni Leadership Board.

Going forward, group members said they hoped the schools would become more transparent about the Diversity Committee and follow through with promises to promote diversity in Lynbrook.

“The point isn’t to put a band-aid on this,” Shah said. “We need to start working from the bottom up and give people the knowledge to confront these issues head on … We thank the community for its overwhelming support. I think people were waiting a long time for someone to acknowledge these issues in Lynbrook. We are very happy with the outcome because we’ve already changed Lynbrook for the better by starting a conversation that needs to be had."