Nearly 1,000 teachers and education professionals tuned in Wednesday, Jan. 13 for a webinar lecture, “HELP: A Charge to Become a ‘Drum Major’ for Equity and Justice,” led by Ronald W. Whitaker II, PhD, Assistant Professor and Assistant Dean, School of Education, and Director, Center for Urban Education, Equity and, Improvement. Sponsored by Pennsylvania Training and Technical Assistance Network (PaTTAN), the presentation addressed effective ways for educators to become leaders—so-called “drum majors”—for change in their districts and institutions.
Whitaker introduced his strategic “HELP” framework for pursuing equity in education— 1) History, 2) Equity vs. Equality, 3) Love, and 4) Practice—following an introduction from Pennsylvania Department of Education Acting Secretary Noe Ortega, PhD.
Ortega described Whitaker as a “great partner” for PA education department leaders who see the educational upheaval created by the COVID-19 pandemic as an opportunity to forge a new learning landscape that corrects long-standing inequities.
“We need to be figuring out how to create a new environment of learning that’s inclusive to all individuals who want to take part in it,” Ortega said.
Whitaker’s HELP framework is intended to provide teachers and administrators in K–12 districts as well as higher education with a path to equity for underrepresented students, particularly those in the African American community.
“Not only are we not defining what social justice means for us, we also have no clear ideal of how to operationalize social justice,” Whitaker said. “Too often, we want to get to the ‘P’ without addressing the ‘H’ first.”
History: Understanding the history of the Black American experience
Whitaker emphasized an understanding of the transition from American slavery to Reconstruction-era racist policy, followed by Jim Crow laws and segregation in the 20th century. He also stressed how modern interpretations of Martin Luther King Jr.’s words—particularly his “I Have a Dream” speech—tend to soften his message.
“He wasn’t talking about a dream that day—he was talking about broken promises in our democracy,” Whitaker said of King’s famous 1963 address. “We take snippets of his speech because of the myth of colorblindness. We want to believe that we’re in a post-racism society.”
Equity vs. Equality: Understanding the difference
Addressing the difference between equity and equality, Whitaker believes, is essential to creating effective diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs in schools.
“Equality means sameness, but equity means giving students the same opportunities,” Whitaker said, noting that DEI programs typically promote equal treatment and representation but don’t go far enough to account for fundamental, systemic inequities in the education system. Some of these inequities for Black students include disparities in disciplinary actions, special education, and access to AP courses, according to Whitaker.
Love: Demonstrating students’ value to them
“This isn’t just a conversation for teachers, but also school leaders and administrators,” he said, adding that some of these inequities can be solved through a greater commitment to fostering love and understanding with students so that they learn their own value. “We’re here this morning because we agree that every student matters. Each has tremendous purpose. We don’t want to act as a savior, but we are called to be in fellowship with our students and communities.”
Whitaker explained that these efforts must also avoid the educational “sins” of lowered expectations and engaging students with the assumption that they don’t care about their education.
“We have to stop problematizing students instead of dealing with the issues in society,” he said.
Practice: Implementing programs informed by findings from steps 1–3
When it comes to the final “P” in his framework, Whitaker described Cabrini’s Aspiring to Educate (A2E) partnership with the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania as an example of an intentional program that can have impactful DEI results. The program is providing financial support for 25 students of color who are studying in the School of Education, contributing to the diversification of the state’s teacher workforce and student body.
Whitaker pointed out that how DEI programs and initiatives will evolve throughout districts across Pennsylvania depends on how honest stakeholders are during the first three “diagnosis” steps of the HELP framework.
“There’s no way you can sprint past this moment,” Whitaker said. “There’s too much work to do. We have this moment right now that we can turn things around collectively, if we’re courageous enough to admit we have been traveling wrong. History will speak to what we decided to do in this moment if racism continues to be an issue in the 22nd century.”