Rachel Malley

Benchmark – Building Trust in a Diverse Community Case Analysis

and Rationale Template

Part 1: Case Analysis

1. Brief summary of the case:

Smith-Jackson Elementary school integrates their special needs program into the daily
running of the school day. The town is known for their population mainly being white
people and in the past were filled with white supremacists. Many of the population come
across racist and do not believe that people of color belong in their city. Smith-Jackson is
also developing a low-come housing project but most of the people are against it because
they feel it will bring many problems into their town with the people living there.

2. Identify the issues to be resolved:

-People in the town of Rose Place have never changed their thinking about racism and
segregation.
-The people in Rose Place are openly racist and express their beliefs about not wanting
the people that "don't look like them" in their town
-Smith-Jackson school is trying to integrate and bring diversity into their school but the
town does not want that

3. Stakeholders involved in the issue:

-People of Rose Place
-Students that attend the school
-Current Principal

4. One or two existing laws or court rulings that relate to the issues:
-The Civil Rights Act of 1964

5. District policies that relate to the issues:

-Schools don't discriminate against their students
-Schools will treat all students equally and give them what they deserve

6. Possible solutions to the issues:

-Have a discuss with the people with concerns
-Take the people of the town to court
-Have a group therapy session

© 2019. Grand Canyon University. All Rights Reserved. Page 1 of 5

 7. The solution you chose to resolve the issues:
-Take the people of the town to court for their intentional discrimination remarks

8. Action steps (2-5) for implementing your solution, including a timeline for each step:
-I would find a school used lawyer and take specific parent to court immediately that I
feel have been the most intentionally discriminated

9. Potential moral and legal consequences of solution:

-It is morally and legally incorrect to judge someone based upon the color of their skin
-It is also the year 2020, so these people making the remarks are well aware of what is
acceptable in today's society
-jail time/ fines for the people going to court

Part 2: Case Study Solution Rationale

Support your case analysis with a 500-750 word rationale explaining the solution you chose and
why. How are the values of democracy, equity, and diversity within the school safeguarded by
your decisions? How does your solution demonstrate integrity and fairness, and ensure a school
system of accountability for every student’s academic and social success?
The town of Rose Place is trying to incorporate diversity into their population by creating

a low-incoming house project. The residents of Rose Place do not want this happening because

they feel that it will bring trouble from the people that would more there. The Rose Place used to

have many white supremacists living there and some of their families are still living there now. It

is very clear that the town has a large amount of people that will discriminate other people solely

based on the fact that they are different and not white. These people believe that "if you are not

white, you aren't right" (Hanson, 2008). They have frequently used racist actions and remarks in

many school situations.

Furthermore, Smith-Jackson Elementary school has a small special needs program that

buses these students back and forth to school each day. This school believes in every child

getting their free and appropriate education. There is a big push for this school to incorporate

more diversity and differences within the school. Even within their faculty and staff members it

is 100% white people. The residents of Rose Place are adamant about keeping the town to white

people only. As the "current principal" of Smith-Jackson, I want there to be great change

happening for this school system. To start, I want to incorporate diversity and embrace
© 2019. Grand Canyon University. All Rights Reserved. Page 2 of 5
differences right away. The residents of Rose Place should be taken to court for their constant

outbursts of racism and discrimination.

Lastly, I would begin to document my encounters that I have with specific parents so I

can collect information to use while in court. My main duty as a principal is to protect and serve

my students. When I hear racist remarks about my students, I am going to address it immediately

and take the appropriate actions to get the situation resolved. Since these discriminatory ideals

have been going on for many years, I think the best way to handle this would be to get the

authorities involved. According to the US Supreme Court, "students cannot be discriminated

against in their admittance to public school on the basis of race" (Esssex, 2015). Essex also

explains that it would be an extremely challenging task to go through a court process when

discrimination involves people in the community (Essex, 2015). But, as a school principal I

would rather explore my options with a lawyer to see if we could make a case. As I would allow

students of any color to have admittance into my school, I will also want to protect them from

constantly hearing racists remarks from families. Also, I believe this will help Rose Place to

come to terms that things need to change in their town and discrimination of someone based on

their skin color is not acceptable at Smith-Jackson Elementary.

Finally, when many actions are taken to make Smith-Jackson a diverse school, I would

also make sure to encourage diversity. According to UNESCO (n.d.), there are many things we

could do in our schools to eliminate racial discrimination. Some ideas include, designing anti-

racist posters throughout the year, celebrate and research famous people of color that made an

impact in the world, and share students cultural differences in the classroom (UNESCO, n.d).

Support your decision citing the case where appropriate and a total of 3-5 scholarly articles.

Part 3: Agenda and Agenda Rationale

Outline an agenda for a meeting focused on community relations to build and sustain positive
school relationships with families and caregivers. Include:

© 2019. Grand Canyon University. All Rights Reserved. Page 3 of 5

EXAMPLE:

Smith-Jackson Elementary School

Community Relations Meeting
Date: 10/6/20
Time: 5:00 pm
Place: 123 School Road. Paterson, NJ

Agenda:

-Discuss how to eliminate racial discriminate in our schools

-Discuss. how to promote diversity

The purpose of this community relations meeting is to promote diversity in our schools

and make families aware that racial discrimination will not be tolerated in our school. I would

first open up the meeting by letting families know that every child has the right to be admitted

into Smith-Jackson Elementary school and they will not be discriminated against under any

circumstance. The first goal that I would set for our families and students would be to share their

cultural differences within the school community. I would make sure there is an entire month

dedicated to students and families getting to know everyone's backgrounds. We can even discuss

having a celebration/festival to promote our differences.

Additionally, the second goal of this meeting would be to get families more involved

with the school. I feel that by getting families more involved with the school it will help to

promote a more unified school environment. This will help the "white supremacists" to be more

accepting of the new people in their school community.

Finally, according to The Lavin Agency, Heather McGhee and Wajahat Ali are influential

speakers about diversity. I would invite them in to the school or have a zoom session with them.

After I go over the purpose of my meeting and our goals. I would have each of those speakers talk for

about 30 minutes each. I would also make sure to record their speakers and post to our schools

© 2019. Grand Canyon University. All Rights Reserved. Page 4 of 5

website so that everyone can hear their words of encouragement about diversity and ending racial

discrimination in our school.

References

Essex, N. L. (2015). School Law and the Public Schools: A Practical Guide for Educational

Leaders (6th Edition) (Myedleadershiplab) (6th ed.). Retrieved from

https://viewer.gcu.edu/7Hp6rJ

Hanson, K. L. (2008). A Casebook for School Leaders: Linking the ISLLC Standards to Effective

Practice (3rd Edition) (3rd ed.). Retrieved from https://viewer.gcu.edu/EJNEYT

The Lavin Agency. (2019, June 25). Top 10 Diversity & Inclusion Speakers: Driving Creativity,

Innovation, and Workplace Satisfaction | The Lavin Agency Speakers Bureau. Retrieved

from https://www.thelavinagency.com/news/top-10-diversity-and-inclusion-speakers

UNESCO. (n.d.). Racism and discrimination have no place in schools and classrooms. Retrieved

from https://aspnet.unesco.org/en-us/racism-and-discrimination

© 2019. Grand Canyon University. All Rights Reserved. Page 5 of 5