The answers to these questions become increasingly important as schools across the country grow more racially and ethnically diverse. For years, minority populations were concentrated in border states like California, New Mexico and Texas and in urban areas like New York, Chicago and Boston. Now, demographic shifts require organizers to think more critically about how to engage culturally and linguistically diverse communities in the decisions affecting public schools. There is no one definition.
Diversity means different things to different people.
For some, it may mean reaching out to people of diverse cultural, ethnic and racial backgrounds. Both definitions are accurate. What matters is understanding how you and your fellow organizers think about diversity and how that thinking shapes planning and recruitment for a community conversation about improving schools. Identifying some commonly held definitions about diversity will help you take a more unified approach to building community support, identifying issues or recruiting participants. This engagement is significant because efforts to improve public education have more staying power when they are supported and understood by parents and community members.