As you may recall, back at the end of September, the Appleton Area School District Leadership Team and Board of Education reviewed the district’s 2020-21 scorecard and goals. One of the action steps brought up was the creation and maintenance of the employee affinity groups that had been implemented by Diversity Equity And Inclusion Officer Pa Lee Moua.
Assistant Superintendent Polly Vanden Boogard had reported to the board that these groups had met a couple of times during the 2020-21 year, and that the purpose of the groups was to “build communities within a larger community to really make sure people feel safe and have a…group of people that they really feel connected to and supported by.”
The groups ended up not being maintained during the 2020-21 school year, but the leadership team hoped to continue utilizing them during the 2021-22 school year, so I reached out to her to learn a little more about these groups, how they worked, and how their success would be measured. She and DEI Officer Moua were both kind enough to answer a number of questions.
I confirmed that there were no safety concerns per se. Rather the term “safe” was used in its broadest sense.
Per Assistant Superintendent Vanden Boogard, “When we refer to the word ‘safe’ it can mean many things, not just physical safety but rather a sense of belonging.” She went on to say, “What we know by research that people want to connect to like individuals and individuals that may have similar lived experiences. This is the purpose of the affinity groups; to provide a place where individuals of similar experiences, beliefs, background and/or race can come together as another way to capture a sense of belonging and provide an opportunity.“
She said that the “HR department will be leveraging some groups in terms of hiring practices to increase a welcoming and inclusive environment. This includes working with Dr. Moua and our Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Office.”
There were 7 groups at the time of my email conversation with Assistant Superintendent Vanden Boogard, but she noted that that number could increase. Those groups consisted of…
- Staff of color affinity group (an umbrella group for all of the other racially oriented groups)
- African American / Black affinity group
- Asian American affinity group
- Latinx/Hispanic affinity group
- LGBTQ affinity group
- Native American/Indigenous affinity group
- Young professionals (18-25 year-olds) affinity group
Regardless of the names or focus, the groups are open to anyone regardless of race, and they consist of “open discussions based on the participants and what they would like to share.” The groups are “offered outside of regular work hours and attendees are not paid for their participation.”
Initially when I asked how many staff members attended the groups I was told, “because the groups were quite small, we would not be able to share a number as this could be identifiable.” However, after further discussion I was told that each group had fewer than 10 attendees except for the staff of color group which grew to almost 20 (not including the facilitator).
They plan to measure the success of the groups through Panorama survey results as well as surveys sent out through AASD’s Human Resources Department.
When I asked which questions on the Panorama survey they expected to see improved scores as a result of the work being done in affinity groups I was told by Pa Lee Moua, “We are hoping that these affinity groups will help increase connection to other staff members and overall sense of belonging on the panorama survey results.”
It is not clear to me which specific questions on the Panorama survey deal with staff member connection and overall sense of belonging. I have, however, included the Panorama survey results from Fall of 2020 and Fall of 2021. Of note is the fact that, after a year of the groups having at least been tentatively started, the scores for “Cultural Awareness and Action” and “Faculty Growth Mindset” actually decreased.
I’ve included the questions I asked and the answers I received below.
Email discussion with Assistant Superintendent Polly Vanden Boogard:
Question: You discussed affinity groups when you presented the Pillar 1 measures and targets to the Board of Education. You mentioned a couple times that the affinity groups were created out of a need to make employees feel “safe”? In what way were employees not safe prior to the implementation of affinity groups? How was the safety concern identified and what was the process by which it was determined that affinity groups would effectively address that safety concern? Have you been able to measure an increase in safety since implementing affinity groups? Finally, how many affinity groups does the district have and how many staff members are attending them?
Answer: Thanks for reaching out. When we refer to the word “safe” it can mean many things, not just physical safety but rather a sense of belonging. What we know by research that people want to connect to like individuals and individuals that may have similar lived experiences. This is the purpose of the affinity groups; to provide a place where individuals of similar experiences, beliefs, background and/or race can come together as another way to capture a sense of belonging and provide an opportunity.
Dr. Pa Lee Moua worked to establish the affinity groups within AASD. As her department (Diversity, Equity and Inclusion) continues to expand, they look to provide opportunities for our students and staff.
Question: How many employees are participating in affinity groups and do you have any metrics for determining if the groups are successful?
Could you explain a little more about the type of employees who do not feel they belong in the AASD organization? I believe you mentioned both Hmong and Black affinity groups. What factors are contributing to Black and Hmong employees lacking a sense of belonging within the AASD organization, and how long has that issue been present? Is it across the board for all Hmong and Black employees or is there just a certain percentage of them that are experiencing it?
Answer: In terms of the numbers of those participating, because the groups were quite small, we would not be able to share a number as this could be identifiable. In terms of success, this is really based on individual (what they were looking to get from the group) as well as our Panorama survey. Last year was a baseline year so we will review our results this year for another data point.
One of the pieces moving forward is that our HR department will be leveraging some groups in terms of hiring practices to increase a welcoming and inclusive environment. This includes working with Dr. Moua and our Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Office.
Question: Could you clarify how many affinity groups you have and what each group is (i.e. you mentioned a Black group and a Hmong group. Are there other groups)?
Who started these groups? Were they organically created by staff members saying they wanted them? Or did the leadership team decide to create them?
You mentioned that their creation was driven by a desire to be welcoming and inclusive and in a previous email you talked about staff members needing a sense of belonging. What was the process by which it was determined that staff members did not feel welcomed or included and how was it determined that affinity groups would be a good way to respond to this problem?
You stated, “Last year was a baseline year so we will review our results this year for another data point.” What were the baseline metrics you recorded and what data points will you be tracking going forward?
Finally, what do these groups do and talk about? Could you please provide any meeting agendas that exist for these affinity group meetings?
Answer: I hope the following is helpful and addresses any questions you may have.
In terms of affinity groups, we have 7 affinity groups that are run through our Diversity, Equity and Inclusion office under the direction of Dr. PaLee Moua. Groups are as follows:
• Staff of color affinity group
• African American / Black affinity group
• Asian American affinity group
• Latinx/Hispanic affinity group
• LGBTQ affinity group
• Native American/Indigenous affinity group
• Young professionals (18 – 25 year olds) affinity group
Please note that this is not an exhaustive list as other affinity groups may continue to form and evolve. However, at this time, this is currently what we have.
In terms of who started these groups, they were started by our Diversity Equity and Inclusion Officer (Dr. PaLee Moua) in order to provide a place for staff to process, reflect and support each other. Affinity groups are one way but not the only way to help staff with a sense of belonging. In education, we look to provide different opportunities for our staff to connect and support each other to enhance a culture of inclusion and sense of belonging. The affinity groups were optional. These optional events are open discussions (no meeting agendas) based on the participants and what they would like to share.
With respect to baseline we use our Panorama data as well as survey’s sent out through our Human Resources department. These avenues for feedback and reflection will continue to exist.
Question: I want to confirm with you that the attendance at these groups is so small that AASD is not willing to even say how many people participate because that may cause the participants to be identifiable. Is that an accurate understanding?
Answer: Group started out with very few people (less than 10) in them but did grow to no more than 20 as events around the world occurred.
Question: Is there any concern that creating racially segregated groups for staff members will inadvertently result in an increased sense of separation and not belonging?
Answer: All staff are invited to participate and therefore the groups are open to anyone.
Question: If these affinity groups do not end up resulting in some kind of quantifiable improvement in staff performance will there be a point at which the district decides to redirect the resources currently being spent on them to other endeavors?
Answer: In talking to PaLee Moua, yes they would be revisited. She also shared that no additional resources were put in place to support the Affinity groups. These were supported by last year’s staff from the DEIO department.
Question: Are staff and educators being paid while they attend these affinity groups or do the meetings take place during personal time?
Answer: The meetings are offered outside of regular work hours and attendees are not paid for their participation.
Email discussion with Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Officer Pa Lee Moua:
Question: Are [the attendance numbers of fewer than 10 and no more than 20] for all groups combined or for each individual group? How many of the affinity groups grew to more than 10 attendees (not including the facilitator)?
Answer: In terms of your question, the 10 represented individual groups not combined. So each affinity group had less than 10. We had one affinity group grow to almost 20 (not including the facilitator).
Question: Which group was the one that grew to almost 20 attendees?
Answer: The group that grew to almost 20 was the staff of color group – which had representation from all the other groups.
Question: I had a chance to look over the Panorama survey results. Which questions on the survey are you expecting to see improved scores as a result of the work being done in the affinity groups?
Answer: We are hoping that these affinity groups will help increase connection to other staff members and overall sense of belonging on the panorama survey results.
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