Equity Express
Granite School District Educational Equity Department
Our Vision
This Month's Issue
In the Fall/Winter issue of Equity Express, we will share helpful resources to support the culture and climate of your schools while ensuring a quality and excellent education for all.
- Indigenous Peoples' Month November 2020
- Recap of Hispanic Heritage Month September 15-October 15
- Cesar Chavez Competition and Gallery Event
- Updates to McKinney-Vento Website
- What Are You Reading? Let's Build Our Equity Literacy Together
- WIDA ACCESS Updates
Indigenous Peoples' Month 2020
Recent Events
After school credit recovery for Native high school seniors will start in the next few weeks. Contact Wendy Peterson (x7140) for more information.
Our Title VI department has been invited to conduct classroom presentations in individual classrooms across our district to promote more awareness of Native American people and their culture. We welcome your interest in having one or more outreach workers join your school or classroom for a classroom presentation. Please contact Wendy Peterson (x7140) for more information and to schedule a visit.
Li'l Feathers
Li'l Feathers cultural classes are held via Zoom every Wednesday evening at 6:30 pm. This has been a wonderful way to connect students and families with each other and build community. Although we are limited in our ability to see each other in person, we love seeing each other on Zoom and we invite you to join us!
Li'l Feathers and UVU Celebrate Veterans' Day in Utah
Celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month, September 15-October 15
Locally, PBS Utah has highlighted Utah's Freedom Riders, including local Latino activists discussing their courageous efforts in Utah to advance the civil rights movement and stand for la igualdad and justicia in our state and across the country.
Building Bridges for Peace: Cesar Chavez Competition 2020-21
The Departments of Educational Equity and Fine Arts Curriculum & Instruction are pleased to announce the winners of the Cesar Chavez Competition of 2020-2021. All winning pieces will be displayed at the Granite School District Art Gallery (2500 South State Street) from November 9th to December 18th. There will not be a gallery reception this year, however the gallery is open to the public Monday through Friday, from 8am to 5pm. Winners and their families are encouraged to visit the display during those hours. A virtual gallery tour will also be available soon at bit.ly/chavezgsd.
Caroline Condie, Grade 11, Olympus High School
Eliza Pearson, Grade 10, Olympus High School
Jasmine Aguilar Perez, Grade 6, Copper Hills Elementary
Excerpt from Language Arts First Prize Winner, Emily Yanez Hernandez, Grade 11, Taylorsville High
La Misma Sangre
Tu y yo nacimos aquí
Ligados by the blood of our ancestors
No trates de implantar en mi alma
La idea de que existe the pure race
Ese cuerpo que te sostiene
No es siquiera tuyo propio
In it you would find la bravura
De los líderes of this wild e indomable tierra
We are citizens of the earth
Sons of the sun
You and I are the same
Porque el mismo cielo nos observa
Hijos de la tierra
Bautizados por caudales de sangre
Que ahora corren por nuestras venas
Llevando el cando de libertad y penas
We are coming back
Coming back to what was stolen from us
Tu y yo tenemos los mismos derechos
Asi que camina derecho
El color de mis ojos El color de mi pelo
Y el color de mi piel
Is not a reason for you to stereotype me
There is no need to fit in
Because tu y yo nacimos aquí
The earth is our home
And that makes us family
Be the change
Be yourself
Be unic
Be change maker
What is Homelessness?
The McKinney-Vento Act defines homelessness as “individuals who lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence.” That can look like:
- sharing housing with another person or family due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or similar reasons;
- living in a motel or hotel;
- living in a shelter or temporary housing;
- living in a car, park, campground, public space, or abandoned building;
- living in housing with infestation, mold, overcrowding, or does not have heat, electricity, or water; or
- a student seeing enrollment without an accompanying parent and not in foster care or state’s custody.
Applications in English and Spanish are available at your school or can be located on our website https://www.graniteschools.org/edequity/homeless/
Many thanks to Shannalee Otanez and Sarah Thomas for their relentless dedication to students and families experiencing homelessness.
The Educational Equity department offers interpreter and translation services to facilitate equitable communication with families in Granite School District.
To request an interpreter or document translation, please visit our Ed Equity Intranet page. There, you will find links to two Google Forms for making requests.
Interpreter Requests
Please complete this form to request an interpreter for your school. Educational Equity will respond to requests within 48 hours. If no interpreter is available, Ed Equity will contact an outside agency to try to fulfill the request. If you do not hear back within 72 hours, please contact us at Educational Equity, 385-646-4205. *If this is for a student that has an IEP or is going through the testing process, please contact Lana Sutton in the Special Education department.
Document Translations
Please complete this form to request translations for either messaging (e.g. email to school community) or a specific document. Educational Equity will respond to requests within 48 hours. Requests are assigned and completed in the order they are received.
It’s time to start thinking about WIDA ACCESS testing!
Did you know that English proficiency growth as measured by the ACCESS accounts for 9% of the USBE school grading system for elementary schools and junior highs and 6% for high schools?
Now is the time to start preparing your multilingual learners for testing. Reach out to your school ALP Lead or Educational Equity Teacher Specialists for more information and resources on how to prepare students, teachers, and other school personnel for a successful ACCESS testing experience.
Ed Equity Teacher Specialists:
Lisa Anderson (x7412, lapeterson2)
Brooke Holyoak (x7397, bholyoak)
Nathan Moore (x7542, nmoore1)
Contact Us
Jadee Talbot, Assoc. Director
Monica Ramos Carlson, Assoc. Director
Email: clui@graniteschools.org
Website: https://gsdsites.graniteschools.org/departments/instructionalservices/educationalequity/Pages/default.aspx
Location: Granite School District, South State Street, South Salt Lake, UT, USA
Phone: 385-646-4205
Twitter: @edequitygsd1