001an advisory council when april came on board and that advisory council had five different subcommittees and one of those subcommittees was tasked with creating a system so that we could recognize the good work that was happening across this agency related to dei so that subcommittee um came up with the the name equity champion award for those of you uh who remember eric witherspoon he used to use that phrase go out and be equity champion so um a little bit of a tip of our hat to eric and the work that he did with us um anyway so that committee created the definition created the survey and um staff members nominated these equity champions so we're very excited to be able to present them to you um and we have a so we have a presentation
002that we're going to walk through each of these equity champions i'm going to tell you a little bit about them um they have each given us a quote about diversity equity and inclusivity um that is on their slides along with their pictures so i am going to ask i guess ed and you're going to share the presentation look at that so eastern suffolk boces board meeting june 23 2021 equity champion award recognition go ahead [Music] so the definition that this subcommittee came up with an equity champion as someone who demonstrates the principles of acceptance and inclusion of all people takes action to engage support and promote equitable practices and makes significant contributions to advancing the eastern suffolk boces vision of equity social justice and multicultural education and our first equity champion of the evening is
003sharon geller sharon is a vocational advisor in the literacy program at the ward technical center she was nominated by shirley burbine miss burvine shares that sharon always goes above and beyond for students and is always looking for new and innovative ways to help our literacy students for example sharon was on the local radio station la fiesta 98.5 via zoom which helped our literacy program by increasing new student enrollment sharon truly cares about our students who are always seeking her out because she is so informative and always willing to help sharon leads the literacy zone and has so many connections with local organizations to help our literacy students miss burvine stated i am so happy to be part of the team with her it is for all of these reasons and more that i wholeheartedly nominate
004sharon as an eastern suffolk boces equity champion congratulations sharon thank you for your dedication and your passion to the work um particularly for our literacy students our next equity champion for the evening is elizabeth hughes elizabeth hughes is a school psychologist at both the brookhaven learning center and west hampton beach learning center she was nominated as an equity champion by a colleague colleague margaret lagarde elizabeth has championed the dei initiative since its inception she has spent countless hours on the eastern suffolk boces advisory council to bring about change in the agency more importantly she serves as a role model to advocate for justice fairness and equity through her interactions with both staff and students elizabeth is an exemplary employee who never fails to invite all to the party ask them to dance and include them
005in selecting songs from the playlist i wholeheartedly nominate her as one of this year's equity champions congratulations elizabeth thank you our next equity champion is mr luke mahoney luke mahoney is the barbering cosmetology teacher at the islip academic center mr mahoney was nominated by sam tacoma mr tacoma shared that luke ensures that all students feel welcome and represented in his classroom many cultural and diverse personalities within the classroom are represented and they are all heard and accepted luke ensures that the classroom is a safe space for all students regardless of their backgrounds respect for all is emphasized in the classroom luke was part of the initial dei task force and continues to work at the agency level bringing light to the dark places within our society and spreading positivity and acceptance sam shared i feel
006that luke has from the beginning provided representation of diversity and reinforced the idea of inclusion with this within eastern suffolk boces he is always there to amplify the voices which otherwise would go unheard luke is the definition of equity champion congratulations mr mahoney thank you thank you our next equity champion dr pat mccabe dr pat mccabe is the program administrator for communications and research located at the james hines administration center she was nominated for this award by stu matty dr mccabe seeks every opportunity to serve as a conduit for information on equity initiatives and to celebrate and embrace the full spectrum of humanity that is evidenced each day in this agency pat does this through the stories and pictures she promotes in our array of agency publications which highlight our agency's diverse and inclusive environment
007and the staff who model our giving caring nurturing culture and initiatives for our students their families and our staff additionally the office of communications and research has been offering foreign language translation services to our agency and our school districts as pat seeks to ensure equitable practices in education by making sure that vital information is accessible to all pat has offered free of charge to our school districts various spanish translation for required budget and voting information for use by the school districts in an effort to support equity for our districts as well as their taxpayers she also seeks every opportunity to ensure that boces communications are translated into spanish including our written publications our social media postings are signage and our connected calls to parents students and staff pat has headed the charge to ensure that
008our bose website and all of its links and attachments are handicap accessible which further promotes best practices and equity for all i wholeheartedly nominate dr mccabe for this recognition congratulations thank you everyone thanks so much next equity champion darlene rosies darling rosie's is the director of the regional information center located at the sequoia instructional support center she was nominated for this award by both gary zimmerman and jim tietjen darlene is an outstanding manager and speaker who always makes a point to recognize and demonstrate acceptance and tolerance of all whom she works with darlene was nominated in recognition of her outstanding leadership and tireless efforts in addressing and raising awareness regarding issues of diversity equity and inclusion across the boces organization the efforts of one person can be a catalyst for change and can truly make
009a difference in how the boces employee community embraces diversity and inclusion darlene has represented the wreck as a member of the leadership team and has led the awareness efforts to create a more inclusive work environment for all she has modeled behaviors demonstrating how much she understands the relevant issues including the root causes of discrimination and the systemic problems that result in inequity her many informative meetings on the topic have allowed staff to personally understand the differences between disparate treatment and the effects of implicit and explicit biases in the workplace additionally she has incorporated sharing sessions allowing for an honest look at which groups are underrepresented darlene has clearly made all of the leaders in our department understand the importance of diversity equity and inclusivity to the boces culture and how we need to include it
010in our employer branding congratulations darlene moses thank you our next equity champion miss wilda rosario uh will de rosario works as a school social worker through our student assistance services program at the hedgehog medford high school miss rosario was nominated for this award by eileen mann wilda takes action to engage support and promote equitable practices in education this is key to her work at hedgehog medford high school where 43 percent of the students are hispanic or latino as a bilingual clinical social worker wilda works with students some of whom have endured a long and difficult journey from their country to live in the united states she developed a group called the newcomers to help students acclimate to their new environment this group meets weekly to offer the students a safe space to express themselves and
011a place where she can encourage them to engage with fellow students in a positive way wilda and her colleagues encourage and embrace their students culture and belongingness to their community by organizing a yearly event at night for english as in the language students as well as events for hispanic heritage month she participates in the eastern septic boces diversity equity and inclusivity agency council wilder recognizes the benefits of the council and works with her peers to raise awareness and celebrate her equity allies and co-conspirators congratulations wilda thank you our next equity champion anna carolina chauffeur anna carolina is a teaching assistant at the west hampton beach learning center anna carolina was nominated for this award by a colleague laura rule the domina the nomination shared that anna's natural characteristics embody those of what bose seeks an
012equity champion in her daily interactions with students and staff she demonstrates the principles of acceptance and inclusion anna's everyday behavior consists of simple yet powerful acts of kindness and respect toward everyone regardless of age title etc she writes beautiful poetry and draws pictures in her classroom that demonstrate diversity in both word and image she makes sure educational materials used in her classroom reflect the skin colors and cultural traditions of her students she has never missed an opportunity to learn and share with others in order to better our work in the community anna believes treating all people with respect is simply how life should be and of course she is right in my humble opinion that is why anna personifies what boces considers to be an equity champion congratulations anna carolina for your nomination and award
013well done thank you very much thank you guys our next equity champion miss tracy stipple tracy stipple is a senior account clerk in the operations and maintenance office at the barton avenue armory miss sippl was nominated for this award by her supervisor mark finnerty mark's nomination said tracy has been a member of the agency's dei task force now advisory council since its inception as a support person in one of our non-instructional programs she has brought an important and unique perspective to the work she has never been hesitant to share her thoughts ask good questions and demonstrate her passion and compassion for all of the people in her office as well as in the agency and beyond as a volunteer to the eastern septic boces dei work tracy represents the operations and maintenance department extremely well
014as a human being she represents all people well congratulations tracy on being recognized for your work and your heart our next equity champion is cindy weitz cindy weitz is a teaching assistant at the west hampton beach learning center as well cindy was nominated for this award by miss elizabeth silva ms silva went on to say that cindy is an equity champion because she demonstrates the principles of acceptance and inclusion of all persons she takes action to engage all of the teachers and staff at west hems beach learning center to support and promote equitable practices by promoting projects for all students and staff to work on together she visits classrooms to check in and ask if any clarification is needed through her work and her personality cindy creates and implements a cultivation of diversity equity and
015inclusivity by raising awareness and dialogue through the projects that are happening throughout the campus thank you cindy and congratulations on this award thank you very much our next equity champion miss sharon wilkerson sharon wilkerson is a social worker at the jefferson academic center sharon was nominated for this award by elizabeth hughes miss hughes indicated in her nominations that she had the pleasure of working with sharon for two years at the jefferson academic center sharon who has been a member of the dei task force now advisory council since it began was the person who introduced elizabeth to the work of the diversity equity and inclusivity task force sharon is a wonderful example of an equity champion she makes all those around her both students and staff feel comfortable to come to her if they are struggling
016with an issue of inequity and they don't know where to turn she is a great active listener and provides passionate and well thought out feedback to those who have sought her advice sharon is a role model and always proves through her actions rather than her words that she is someone who is inclusive of all on a daily basis thank you sharon for your passion for the work and for being an equity champion congratulations our next equity champion is none other than miss sarah winsley sarah winley is a business manager one in the transportation department at the barton avenue armory miss windley was nominated as an equity champion by her supervisor joe lesnick sarah is a professional business manager who exemplifies not only good work practices but does so with respect to all staff vendors and
017customers she sets standards by not allowing employees to bully others and calls anyone out when they fail to show respect for any fellow employee sarah understands that each person may have unique abilities and talents and she works to bring out the best in each individual she recognizes the difference between acceptance and inclusion of all people and applies those principles daily sarah is accepting and welcoming of anyone from any walk of life when dealing with student issues and encountering a troubled parent sarah makes no judgment she works to resolve every issue in the student's best interest as if the student were her own child she is willing to work and train deserving candidates she assigns work reviews work performances and interacts with all people without bias or a preconceived perspective she treats all fairly and with
018respect she is accepting of everyone even if they share a different gender ethnicity age education beliefs or truths without making others feel uncomfortable of their differences sarah supports eastern suffolk boces policies on diversity equity and inclusivity easily as it is in her being and her practice in all she does before we even supported such initiatives congratulations sarah on this uh thank you very much equity champion award you're welcome i appreciate it um our next equity champion miss nicole zergabel nicole zergabel is an assistant principal at the gary d bixhorn technical center nicole was nominated as an equity champion by talia one of the teachers talia writes nicole has gone above and beyond to support encourage and promote equitable practices for the staff and students at the bixhorn technical center nicole is always sharing links and
019resources to help staff become more aware or gain better perspective by encouraging us to widen our lenses nicole has become our building cheerleader as she improves morale for both staff and students she visits classes to congratulate students for jobs well done develops monthly activities that highlight the accomplishments of diverse populations gives students the opportunity to express their voices created a post-it wall of appreciation and has created building activities that make staff and students feel valued and respected nicole and the principal invite staff to a weekly staff zoom meeting to share what is going on in the classrooms celebrate personal accomplishments express concerns ask questions and simply have a comfortable platform to gather as a building family where important issues can be discussed it's hard to suddenly look back on specific details as to why nicole
020should be one of our first equity champions because they are so numerous in summary nicole is an example of an equity champion because of the effort and enthusiasm that she puts forth in creating an inclusive working environment that supports a positive culture and takes every opportunity to celebrate diversity congratulations miss zergabaum thank you i appreciate it so our next equity champion award goes to a group and i am going to ask miss april francis taylor to join me in introducing the concept of our parent family advisory council which is something that april helped us get underway thanks dr lutz and happy to be here this evening and celebrate our equity champions it's such a wonderful um end of our school year so just as dr lutz shared um when we you know looking at how
021as an agency we're doing we were doing these this equitable or working towards more equitable systems we knew we had to be inclusive of all our uh stakeholder voices and that especially it includes our students and our families so in late october we put out a call to families from all of our k-12 uh programs uh which are also special ed and cte career technical education and these wonderful family advocates accepted and they accepted to support our mission around dei uh if we can go to the next slide and the purpose and just going to read the mission that we we started out as as a um as an advisory council is uh the purpose of the eastern suffolk boces diversity equity and inclusivity parent family advisory council better known as pfac is to serve
022in an advisory role to the eastern suffolk boces leadership teams and advocate for families within the agency the council's aim is to provide our stakeholders with support guidance and information to fuel equitable practices in our agency with a family lens so this was an empowering group that gave us great insight uh had excellent conversations and worked in committees and they dedicated time in the evening after very long days and various um supports for their own children to have these conversations so i'm so excited that we're able to um recognize them tonight and so i'll pass it back to dr lutz so the members of our parent family advisory council that we are recognizing this evening if you go to the next slide are megan j adamo beverly claiborne jennifer tons of lazio diana d'amico dodie
023daniels jacqueline greene deborah guercio joy jensen shaylen moody patty rojas and stephanie volpe so as april said this group of volunteer parents and family members responded to a survey asking for family interest and support of the agency dei work these all women by the way came together at the beginning of the 2021 school year as volunteers we've met quarterly in the midst of this pandemic with our agency leadership to hear about the work of the agency and to provide the critical and oftentimes missing parent and family viewpoints they are committed to the dei work on behalf of all students and represent multiple educational programs across special ed and career and technical education they are amazing in that their focus is what is best for all children not just their own children they are well spoken
024and passionate in their desire to help the agency move this work forward exemplifying eastern suffolk boces equity champions and we could not be more proud to be able to recognize this group of people in our inaugural equity champion uh award grouping so thank you again ladies for your work april and claudia and i really humbled to be able to work with you this year and excited to see what next year brings so thank you all for um for being a part of that work and bringing your hearts to the work um if you can stop sharing the screen i just have a couple of summary comments so i hope that you as you listen to the description of this year's equity champions realized they come from all different places in this agency nominated by all
025different people in the agency which i think is just a testament to the breadth and the depth of where this work has gone and the you know the different reasons that they were nominated um how they're doing the work in the different places that they um that they each work it really is heartwarping heartwarming not only um to hear about the work that they're doing but to understand that there are colleagues out there who not only recognize that work and the people that they work with but um took the time and energy to nominate them so um again very very grateful to april for joining us this year and moving forward on this work with dave and i it is and all of this in the middle of a pandemic and working in a socially
026distanced way um so just really um humbled by all the work that you have done both are equity champions and the folks who took the time to nominate them so thank you all this is our last meeting for uh the 1920-21 school year so i'm i'm sure that their our work will continue next year and i know that the people who are nominated will be part of the work because they have the passion to continue it so thank you very much thank you for your comments in the chat especially from our parent family advisory council council i can't bring myself to call it pfac [Music] congratulations everybody yeah thank you very much everybody thank you dr lotz and thanks to the board this is a wonderful event all right i'll hand it back over to
027you lisa thank you so much and i'd like to thank all of our equity champions your kindness and your compassion for humankind are lessons that we can all learn from thank you ever so much in a very changing time and it's all it's so wonderful and thank you april thank you so at this point i'd like to thank those who've joined for the presentation portion of the meeting it will be posted on the eastern suffolk bose's youtube video webpage for others who want to view it in the