• RESJ Professional Development and Learning

    In alignment with the RESJ Framework and Plan and the ½ûÂþÌìÌà Strategic Plan:  Forward Together, the RESJ team is collaborating across departments at ½ûÂþÌìÌà to design and implement a full scope and sequence of professional learning to increase every ½ûÂþÌìÌà employee's skills and application in diversity, equity and inclusion.  Under Theme 1:  Racial Equity and Social Justice, Cultivate a Culture of Racial Equity and Care, Goal #1 states:  Develop and implement RESJ professional learning and school site supports aligned to the RESJ PD Framework and the Professional Learning Master Plan.  This is done in collaboration with school teams, departments, and external partners so the entire system is engaged in continuous RESJ learning and improvement.  

     

    For more information, contact:

    Will Fernandez

    RESJ Senior Manager

    wifernandez@pps.net

  • RESJ Professional Development Framework

    As part of the district wide work  to update the Racial Educational Equity Policy and resulting plan and framework, ½ûÂþÌìÌà will adopt a plan to support all employees as they develop their competencies in Racial Equity and Social Justice outlined in this framework. (Click image below to see presentation)

    Framework

  • RESJ Professional Learning Partners

    ½ûÂþÌìÌà has long partnered with organizations to provide professional learning in racial equity.  For nearly a decade, ½ûÂþÌìÌà worked with Pacific Educational Group to offer Courageous Conversations and Beyond Diversity.  Those offerings gave ½ûÂþÌìÌà an entry point into the conversation. It gave us a protocol to step into, a compass to allow for reflection during hard conversations. It laid the foundation for ½ûÂþÌìÌà to start discussing racism and its impacts.  Now as we partner with new organizations like CEI, they give us the context and understanding of how racism was created in the US. It gives us language for Personal, Institutional and Cultural racism. It's teaching us to move from “I’m not racist” to how our institutions and cultures continue the predictable outcomes for our black and indigenous students, staff and families. It teaches us to critically look at policy with our RESJ Lens.  As we expand our partnership with LJIST, we believe it will expand our racial equity and social justice work by giving us the tools needed for our interpersonal work. The work needed to authentically give and receive feedback. This is a necessary partner to the systems work, because even if we excel in the systems work, we will be limited in our capacity for growth unless we are also doing our personal work. Once we can see each other and begin to heal, we can see that feedback and engaging with one another is a gift. I care enough about you to understand your hurt is my hurt and your success is my success. Many of our schools and partners use Luis Valdez’s poem En Lek Ech, which repeats, “you are my other me,” or “tu eres mi otro yo.” LJIST is a skill set to get us closer to Tu Eres Mi Otro Yo.

  • RESJ Foundations with Center for Equity & Inclusion

    After adopting the ½ûÂþÌìÌà RESJ Professional Development Framework in July 2019, ½ûÂþÌìÌà partnered with the Center for Equity and Inclusion (CEI) to co-design and deliver the professional development.  This PD is comprised of two years of learning in cohorts with the goal of continuously expanding the cohorts to scale in alignment with the ½ûÂþÌìÌà Strategic Plan:  Forward Together.  In Theme 1: Racial Equity and Social Justice - Cultivate a Culture of  Racial Equity and Care, Goal #1:  Develop and implement RESJ professional learning and school site supports aligned to the RESJ PD Framework and the Professional Learning Master Plan.  This is done in collaboration with school teams, departments, and external partners so the entire system is engaged in continuous RESJ learning and improvement.  

    The linked document below describes the series and lists the cohorts who have participated to date.  

     

    The chart below represents the number of ½ûÂþÌìÌà employees that were offered the RESJ Foundations with CEI.

  • RESJ Healing Series with Luna Jimenez Institute for Social Transformation

    In the summer of 2020, after the murder of Mr. George Floyd, ½ûÂþÌìÌà offered leaders of color the opportunity to heal in affinity spaces with the partnership of the (LJIST).  

    Building on the success of the series, ½ûÂþÌìÌà engaged with LJIST to offer a more in-depth professional learning series focused on transformational leadership and healing. Below is a link to the program overview. 

     

    The chart below represents the number of ½ûÂþÌìÌà employees that were offered the RESJ Foundations with Luna Jimenez Institute for Social Transformation

  • RESJ Introductory Learning

    As part of our agreement with the Portland Association of Teachers in 2021-2022, ½ûÂþÌìÌà worked to offer introductory learning in RESJ available to everyone.   The agreement states that "The District shall provide each professional educator professional development on implicit bias, antiracism, and culturally responsive practices. These trainings will be available to all professional educators within the workday and standard work year."  The RESJ team worked with PAT and HR Labor Relations to offer these videos during distance learning so that everyone could access them remotely and will continue to work to offer in person offerings in the next school year.   

    Below is a link to the ½ûÂþÌìÌà RESJ Overview training:

    RESJ Framework

    Below is link to the ½ûÂþÌìÌà RESJ Lens and Protocols training:

    ½ûÂþÌìÌà RESJ Lens - An Anti-Bias Tool