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The Wake County school system says it’s still committed to promoting equity despite ongoing state and federal efforts to ban diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) practices.
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Wake County has eliminated its Office of Equity Affairs and took steps Tuesday to remove references to soliciting business from minority-owned companies to comply with recent changes in state law. But the school district is still keeping its equity policy, which calls for “applying an equity lens” on issues.
“WCPSS operates under federal and state laws that prohibit discrimination, and we remain committed to providing a welcoming, supportive, and high-quality educational environment for all students,” the district said in a statement Tuesday. “While the district remains committed to providing strong educational opportunities to all students, there is no longer an Office of Equity Affairs.”
Equity has been a major area of focus in North Carolina’s largest school system for years.
In 2022, the school board adopted an equity policy that calls for addressing disparities, reflecting on biases and recognizing the voices of marginalized groups.
The policy defines equity as “the elimination of predictability and disproportionality of outcomes based on student characteristics.” Examples of student characteristics are race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, language of origin, disability, sex, gender identity and sexual orientation.
The policy calls for “applying an equity lens,” which means asking teachers and other school employees to reflect on whether any of their practices and biases negatively impact students.
School employees are asked in the policy to reflect on how they can “interrupt inequity” and in what ways do they “affirm” the “lived experiences, culture and identities” of students.
The Office of Equity Affairs was charged with helping put the equity policy into practice.
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Since then, the Trump administration has moved to eliminate DEI in federally funded institutions. This week, the White House touted how it has terminated more than $2 billion in DEI funding from schools.
In June, GOP state lawmakers overrode Democratic Gov. Josh Stein’s veto to pass the new K-12 DEI ban on the promotion of 12 “divisive concepts.” This includes banning teaching about “white privilege” — that white people have unfair advantages over others in the U.S. solely due to their race..
School districts were also required by the law to eliminate offices that promote DEI.
Over the years, Wake’s Office of Equity Affairs has frequently been targeted by critics of the district.
The state budget abolished the state office that supported minority-owned businesses and repealed several state laws intended to increase opportunities for businesses owned by members of minority groups to win government contracts, The News & Observer previously reported.
On Tuesday, the school board’s policy committee approved changes to the equity policy to remove language about minority-owned businesses.
The policy committee also backed repealing district policies on participation by historically underutilized businesses and minority -owned businesses. Board members and district staff said it was strictly being done to comply with state law.
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