1. Promoting Diversity in a Public Montessori Community
Lindsey Pollock, Ed.D. - Principal Garden Oaks Montessori Magnet – Houston ISD

2. Montessori for Social Justice
Social justice is defined as "... promoting a just society by challenging injustice and valuing diversity." It exists when "all people share a common humanity and therefore have a right to equitable treatment, support for their human rights, and a fair allocation of community resources." In conditions of social justice, people are "not be discriminated against, nor their welfare and well-being constrained or prejudiced on the basis of gender, sexuality, religion, political affiliations, age, race, belief, disability, location, social class, socioeconomic circumstances, or other characteristic of background or group membership”
- - - Matthew Robinson, PhD

3. “This is education, understood as a help to life; an education from birth, which feeds a peaceful revolution and unites all in a common aim, attracting them as to a single centre. Mothers, fathers, politicians: all must combine in their respect and help for this delicate work of formation, which the little child carries on in the depth of a profound psychological mystery, under the tutelage of an inner guide. This is the bright new hope for mankind.” (Dr. Maria Montessori, The Absorbent Mind, p. 15)

4. Overview of Garden Oaks
Houston, TX in 2010
Montessori Magnet with Environmental Sciences
On the list of school for closure consideration
PTO and separate FOM
Bilingual, Vanguard, Special Education, Title I
PK3-6th grade Montessori and PK – 5th Traditional
500 students (42% ELL, 78% FRL)
6 Montessori (3 CH, 2 LE, 1 UE) and 13 traditional classrooms

5. 2010 MSAP Grant Magnet School Assistance Program http://www2. ed
These grants assist in the desegregation of public schools by supporting the elimination, reduction, and prevention of minority group isolation in elementary and secondary schools with substantial numbers of minority group students.

6. 2010 MSAP
73% Hispanic
18% White
5% African American
4% Other

7. 2010 MSAP Response of the community.
You want to get rid of all the Hispanics?

8. Strategies
Message the importance and value of diversity for all members of the community.
Recruitment in neighborhoods – civic club meetings, health clinics, community events
Share the message of Montessori

9. Strategies Take technology with you!
Have parents of color at recruitment events and lead tours of the school
Language assistance for families who need translation

10. Strategies
Cultural sensitivity – Hispanic families prefer to work with a person not a computer
Emphasize the importance of non-negotiable deadlines

11. Strategies District policies to support diversity
Breakfast meetings for parents
Community service projects in areas where we are recruiting

12. Challenges District policies Admission beyond 3rd grade
Sibling admissions
Lottery accuracy and numbers in the pool

13. We continue to message….
To families
To staff
To school board members
To the community

14. WalletHub 2015 found that Houston ranked in the country’s Top 10 for Most Diverse City in the nation at #7 (the only one NOT in CA or WA)
No. 16 for ethno-racial and linguistic diversity,
No. 20 for economic diversity,
No. 67 for economic class diversity
No. 81 for household diversity.
Other categories measured other qualifiers for Houston, such as educational diversity (Houston ranked No. 6 in the nation), industry diversity (No. 27), racial and ethnic diversity (No. 37) and language diversity

15. https://wallethub.com/edu/most-diverse-cities/12690/
Results for 2016 put Houston at 23 and only TWO cities in the top 10 were in CA with 0 in Washington state

16. Definitions
Diversity is the “mix” but inclusive environments maximize the “mix” for all participants.

17. What types of diversity exist in your school setting?
Turn to your neighbor and generate a list!

18. Age/generation Dietary
Gender Medical
Gender expression Physical
Sexual orientation
Religion/spirituality
Cultural
Race
Language
International
Socio-economic
Regional – north, south, east and west

19. How did that exercise make you feel?
What do we teach our children about diversity?
What have you been taught about diversity?
Resource

20. Why do we care about diversity?
The wave of the future
Biodiversity in the natural world necessary for survival
We depend on one another for our existence on earth

21. Factors to consider Montessorians of color School enrollment diversity
Cultural
Race
Socio-economic

22. Representation is inspiration for the next generation.

23. Leveling the playing field.

24. Mindsets
Each person has a piece of fabric that represents everything you need to survive for the next year.
I will say “go” at which time you are free to move around the room.
I will check the group in 3 minutes to see how many survive.
----- Meeting Notes (11/3/11 09:03) -----
Care of Self, Care of Environment

25. People from "diverse" populations bring valuable perspectives.

26. “The limits of my language are the limits of my world
“The limits of my language are the limits of my world.” ‒Ludwig Wittgenstein
My personal language journal –high school Spanish, Norway, teaching in HISD and my husband from Venezuela
The children at Garden Oaks speak many first languages including: French, Turkish, Madarin, Spanish, Italian and Arabic

27. Ask not why you should push for diversity in your field and in your life; ask whether you can afford not to!

29. United Nations observance
WORLD CULTURE DAY!
United Nations observance
May 21 every year!
In 2017 this fall on a Sunday. What other days can you add to your school calendar? What are traditions you already include?
ttp://

30. Overview of Garden Oaks
Houston, TX in 2016
Montessori Magnet with Environmental Sciences
Recently transitioned to all-Montessori (2nd yr)
PTO and FOM working together
Bilingual, Vanguard, Special Education, Title I
PK3-8th grade
771 students (28% ELL, 52% FRL) in36 classrooms
1,000+ applications for 60 spots!

31. 2016 after MSAP 50% Hispanic 27% White 12% African American
10% Multi-racial
3% Other

32. Garden Oaks’ Next Steps
Cultural awareness committee as part of the PTO
Cultural programs and ubiquitous
Diversity focus in discussions and in planning calendars
Continue to support and engage parents with classes and home visits in parents’ first language (translations of flyers and call outs as well as via Living Tree online)

33. Garden Oaks’ Next Steps
Lead teacher structure
Small PLCs with once-a-month “early dismissal for whole group extended planning” teaching assistants will cover or extra-duty pay
Language Clubs
Arabic-speaking teacher on campus
Continue to use strategies from this year!

34. Action steps?
Take aways?
Questions for the good of the group?

35. “To have another language is to possess a second soul.” ‒Charlemagne
“I think... if it is true that there are as many minds as there are heads, then there are as many kinds of love as there are hearts.” ― Leo Tolstoy
“Christian, Jew, Muslim, shaman, Zoroastrian, stone, ground, mountain, river, each has a secret way of being with the mystery, unique and not to be judged” ― Rumi
“It is time for parents to teach young people early on that in diversity there is beauty and there is strength.”
― Maya Angelou

36. THANK YOU!
Lindsey Pollock, Ed. D.
cell
Garden Oaks Montessori
901 Sue Barnett
Houston, TX