There isn’t a single school district in the United States that has managed to achieve racial equity — at least, not that any of us have heard of. That means that in any school district in the United States, there is still a correlation between a child’s race and their educational outcome. On a systems level, we haven’t yet managed to address the legacy of our country’s racist foundation.

Our group, the Parents and Friends for Racial Equity in the Vashon Schools, would like to change that. We are aiming for a time when every single child in our district is supported to thrive, regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation, trauma history, family background, and physical and intellectual ability.

Why are we focusing on racial equity? Especially if we care about all children — aren’t children of all races struggling? What about gender or socioeconomic status? Yes, of course those are important too. It turns out that when we focus on institutional racism, all students benefit, even students with non-race-related identities that are also correlated to lower educational outcomes. Leading with race helps us create equitable schools for all.

And, what stands out from the educational data is that an opportunity gap still exists: compared to white children, those of color are not doing as well. This is clear according to various metrics both nationally and in our own school district, from standardized test scores and graduation rates to student and parent narratives about their experience. When you look at data through a racial equity lens, you see this achievement gap between which student groups occupy the highest and lowest achievement categories. For a similar high-performing school district in the Puget Sound, there is a 73 percent achievement gap in math between their highest (English-speaking mainstream Asian American students) and lowest (ELL Latino students) performing students. Our district follows similar patterns and it’s time we work to eliminate this unjust gap.

In this sense, Vashon is not an “island” — the data from our district is consistent with the rest of the US. And, of course, schools are just one layer in a larger fabric of structural racism. That said, schools are one place where we as a community have a lot of leverage and we can make a significant impact.

Our Parents and Friends for Racial Equity group is ready to help Vashon break out of the national trend. We think this is the time and place to do it: we have a massively committed and talented community, superintendent, school board, faculty and staff. We also have the years of groundwork that Vashon’s Latina(o) community has already created to address the structural racism of our institutions. We have many teachers and administrators who have been addressing racism in our schools already, and we can learn from the lessons and best practices of other school districts who are leading the way with racial equity. We want to keep going with the momentum that’s already here. Our group is here to provide support, collaboration and resources to make racial equity a reality.

Our mission is to partner with Vashon Island School District and serve as a resource to help all children and families promote inclusion, racial equity and social justice, to create permanent systemic change, and to close the opportunity gap. Our goal is to teach children and their parents how to recognize and combat racism and racial discrimination, as well as engage in dialogue about race issues with respect and integrity.

Racial equity is a ‘lens’ — a way of seeing the world, not a program, curriculum, or add-on. We don’t know what we will discover and create together, but we know it’s going to take a lot of honesty, humility, engagement, creativity and commitment.

We’d love for you to join our efforts, even if that just means staying in the loop about what’s happening. You can find us on Facebook at Parents and Friends for Racial Equity on Vashon Island. If you’re not on Facebook, you can email Spring Hecht at spring.hecht@gmail.com to join our mailing list.

In the words of the poet Antonio Machado: “Wanderer, there is no path. The path is made by walking.”

Let’s walk together.

— Amanda Blaine is an islander who is part of Vashon’s racial equity committee. She has two decades of experience working with youth and adults as a facilitator, teacher and coach.