November 13, 2023 | Community Dialogue Event #3 :: Please join us and invite a friend!

6:30-7:45 pm at Bexley Public Library Auditorium – 2411 East Main Street

Discussion Agenda

• Review of the September meeting with school leadership

• Provide updates on the progress made

• Hear and share personal stories of incidents of racism that have occurred in the schools since our last gathering 

• Discuss how this group can work most effectively to make and sustain changes in our schools

September 8, 2023 | Meeting with Bexley Schools Leaders

Given recent leadership changes, the planning team met with the newest members of the Bexley Schools Leadership team -- Laura Moore (Leader of Experiential Learning & Community Engagement) and Stephen Lewis (Leader of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) to bring them up-to-date on our community and cause, review the ideas submitted by the community,  and discuss how we parter to move forward on the implementation of these ideas into school processes and policies going forward.

May 10, 2023 | Community Dialogue Event #2

Discussion Agenda

• Review of the April Meeting with School Leadership

• Discuss District Leadership Presentation to Board of Education: “Confronting & Combating Racism”

  • IMPORTANT: Please watch the presentation (1 hour) and make notes of your thoughts and feedback. We do recognize that this is a time investment! We want to ensure we have an informed and productive exchange of perspectives at the May 10 dialogue event.

• Discuss DEI Leadership Role at Bexley Schools 

  • Marcelius Braxton, Leader of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion has resigned

  • Position description for new hire is available online

  • Please provide your input on the interview and/or volunteer to participate in the hiring process using this form by Monday, May 8

• Discuss Holding the Schools Accountable for Actionable Change and Measurable Progress

April 10, 2023 | Meeting with Bexley Schools Leadership Team

The planning team met with the Bexley Schools Leadership team -- Dr. Fine, Marcelius Braxton, Steve Shapiro, and Casey Cosgray to begin discussions on the ideas submitted by the community and how we can partner together to organize, prioritize, and implement these ideas into school processes and policies going forward. Topics discussed in this initial meeting included: 

• The Equity Plan

• Zero tolerance for racism and hate speech

• Anti-racism curriculum for students and families

• Anti-racism curriculum for teachers

• Safety app to report racist incidents

• Communication of racist incidents to students, parents, and the community

• Reporting and tracking, dashboard, and audits

April 1, 2023 | Organizing for Impact

Thank you for participating in the idea generation process and sharing links to the survey and contact form with your network! The planning team is preparing to meet with Dr. Fine, Marcelius Braxton, Steve Shapiro, and Casey Cosgray to review the community ideas submitted and discuss a plan of action for organizing, prioritizing, and implementing these ideas into school processes and policies going forward. This will be the first meeting of many and we look forward to the continued and ongoing partnership from the school leadership team. 

• Mark your calendar to attend the next school board meeting on April 12 at 6:00 p.m. at Bexley City Hall or via Live Stream on YouTube. 

We are also planning the next community meeting for late April. During our time together we will (1) share information on the progress made with our school leadership team and (2) facilitate collaborative discussions on ideas that require additional development, research, planning, leadership, etc. 

• If you would like to assist in planning this meeting, please email us!

March 12, 2023 | Community Survey Open Until Sun, March 26

Please continue to share the link to the community survey where we are collecting ideas to ensure Bexley Schools are an anti-racist environment. We will close the survey on Sunday, March 26 in preparation for a meeting with the school superintendent and leadership team, where we will provide a summary of the comments and work toward how to move these ideas into action. (SURVEY CLOSED)

March 8, 2023 | Bexley School Board Meeting

At the March 8, 2023 school board meeting, we introduced ourselves and shared our group's purpose with the School Board and Superintendent. We asked for their partnership in prioritizing the ideas provided by the community and identifying how we turn these ideas into action.

• A recording of the meeting and public comment section (at the end) is available to view on YouTube.

February 23, 2023 | Community Dialogue Event

A group of concerned Bexley parents and residents came together for an evening collaborative session to generate ideas for how Bexley Schools must improve safety, communication, education and culture.  More than 60 attendees generated ideas in small group discussions that will be summarized and published to the community. Contact information was gathered to support communications with the group about next steps and plans. 

• If you'd like to submit your ideas to be included in this initiative, please fill out this survey. (SURVEY CLOSED)

• If you'd like to share your contact information, please fill out this form.

February 13, 2023 | Meeting: Parents of Black Students

Parents of black students in Bexley Schools came together to share their families' experiences and concerns after the racist image posted during the Bexley Middle School student announcements on Friday,  February 3 and subsequent acts of racism that have occurred in the schools.  The group attending committed to working together to organize actions to hold the Bexley Schools accountable for improving the experience of all Black students.