DEI efforts in Minnesota schools still matter

Opinion editor’s note: Editorials represent the opinions of the Star Tribune Editorial Board, which operates independently from the newsroom.

•••

When it comes to diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives in Minnesota schools, confusion, concerns and misinformation abound.

In Bemidji, non-U.S. flags were taken down because of the district’s viewpoint-neutral stance on displays. The Worthington school board voted to remove Pride flags from classrooms based on objections from some constituents. And last month, a U.S. Court of Appeals reinstated a case alleging that Lakeville Area Schools discriminated against parents critical of district-sponsored Black Lives Matter posters. Parents had requested but couldn’t get alternative Blue Lives Matter posters installed.

And recently, Anoka-Hennepin board members continue to debate whether to rescind or change district policies about gender identity.

But many of those objections to solid DEI plans are, in our view, misplaced. That is not to say that all the numerous individual efforts are perfect. But, generally, many are warranted as schools work to improve student achievement and make school environments more welcoming and supportive of all kids.

The Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) rightly continues to laud DEI efforts as important for state students. Its website affirms the MDE’s commitment to educational equity in stating that it “is the condition of justice, fairness and inclusion in our systems of education so that all students have access to the opportunities to learn,” and that it “recognizes the historical conditions and barriers that have prevented opportunity and success in learning for students based on their races, incomes and other social conditions. Eliminating those structural and institutional barriers … requires systemic change that allows for distribution of resources, information and other support.”

And the MDE’s Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Center doesn’t mandate what districts should do, but instead provides help and resources for districts to set their policies to live up to the state’s Every Student Succeeds Act.

Full disclosure: Star Tribune Media Company includes a commitment to diversity and inclusion as part of its mission.

As students return to school this fall, there will likely be even more districts grappling with diversity concerns. In education and other areas of American life, DEI efforts are under attack; in political campaigns, some are demonizing the efforts as something directly opposite of what they are intended to be.

Some critics say DEI really stands for “division, exclusion and indoctrination.” In most Minnesota K-12 programs, nothing could be further from the truth.

Now to return to concerns in Anoka-Hennepin, the state’s largest district. In 2009 and 2010, Anoka-Hennepin schools experienced the suicides of several students who parents and friends said identified as gay or who were perceived as gay. Their deaths brought national attention to the way the district handled bullying and sexual orientation, and led to a federal consent decree that mandated changes in policies — although the district ultimately said it found no evidence of a link between the students’ deaths and the school environment.

The Star Tribune’s opinion pages have published both pro and con commentaries on this issue in the interest of fairness. Still, the Star Tribune Editorial Board is firmly supportive of things like ethnic studies in schools, seeking more diversity in education staff ranks and anti-bullying efforts to help students from all types of families and orientations feel welcome and supported. And since some concerns about DEI involve division and rewriting America’s past, we believe that the initiatives help expand instruction to include a broader version of history that tells the truth about the contributions of and challenges faced by women and people of color.

If some DEI efforts in schools prove ineffective, they certainly can be modified, improved or dropped. But on balance, there is still a need for schools to be inclusive as part of providing students with a good education.