POLICY ANALYSIS 1
Policy Analysis
Amber Wright
School of Education, Liberty University
Author Note
Amber Wright
I have no known conflict of interest to disclose.
Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Amber Wright
Email: awright146@liberty.edu
POLICY ANALYSIS 2
Policy Analysis
Chesterfield County Public Schools is a very large, school division in central Virginia
with an incredibly diverse population. As a result, it has a very comprehensive policy regarding
equity (See Appendix A). This policy while quite long and detailed, it quite simple at the heart
of it. All staff and students are to be treated the same and all practices that promote inequities
will be eliminated. The equity policy is proactive rather than reactive and strives to build a
collaborative community within the district where all members feel valued, respected, and that
they belong.
Clarity
The current policy is very lengthy and detailed, but remains easy to read and understand.
It is broken into 11 action steps and has a second part that details questions that will be asked
when considering resource allocation, staffing, and inclusive, instructional environments. While
the policy could end at the statement that CCPS does not discriminate based upon race, sex,
creed, color, national origin, class, socioeconomic status, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation,
gender identity, cognitive/physical ability, disability, diverse language fluency, religion, ancestry,
marital or parental status, or any other unlawful basis, it continues on to detail the specific steps
it will take to ensure that all members of the community will have equal standing and access.
There is no ambiguity and each aspect of the policy is clear to board members and community
members alike.
Guidance During Decision Making
As it is written, the policy clearly provides guidance during decision making as evidenced
by the specific steps detailed in the second portion of the policy that lays out the guidelines for
resource allocation, staffing, and creating inclusive, instructional environments. These questions,
POLICY ANALYSIS 3
such as “does each decision align with the vision/mission of the school?” (2021), structure the
decision-making process through the lens of equity. These action steps would prove quite
valuable in regards to sensitive situations regarding school climate. Dr. Sami Ulla (2018)
discussed the importance of educational policies and stated that lack of policies leads to
inconsistency. In a matter as important as equity, it is critical that there be consistency, especially
in a district that serves over 60,000 students. Dr. Ulla (2018) further stated that “an organization
without policy is an organization without control.” What a powerful statement! All too often we
view policies as restrictions to our freedom, when in reality they are often put in place to protect
us. The equity policy in Chesterfield County is in place to ensure that all involved with the
school division are treated in a manner that is equitable to all.
Potential Changes
If I were the superintendent of CCPS, I might suggest some minor changes to the policy.
As it is written, it is a comprehensive, very detailed policy. I might suggest separating the initial
policy statement and the guiding questions into two separate policies. This would allow for the
policy itself be slightly easier to read and the action steps would be laid out separately. Overall, I
feel the policy is necessary to address an inclusive learning culture and a safe learning
environment that were considered important by Ulla (2018). The policy includes all members of
the learning community, students, staff, stakeholders, the board, and parents. It addresses the
basic human right of equal treatment despite differences. This is a necessary policy and is well
written so that it can be properly implemented.
POLICY ANALYSIS 4
POLICY ANALYSIS 5
References
Standing Together: Equity at CCPS. Chesterfield County Public Schools. (2021, April 6).
https://mychesterfieldschools.com/standing_together_equity_at_ccps/.
Ulla, S. (2018, March 25). Importance of Policies in School Education Ecosystem. LinkedIn.
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/importance-policies-school-education-ecosystem-sami-
ulla-m.
POLICY ANALYSIS 6
Appendix A
CCPS Equity Policy
Chesterfield County Public Schools takes pride in the global backgrounds of all our students. It is
our goal to ensure that each student has an innovative educational experience and a dynamic
learning environment that is barrier-free and counteracts the contemporary and historical impact
of bias, prejudice, and discrimination. The School Board recognizes that a number of critical
factors must be considered to ensure that all students achieve at high levels. Chesterfield County
Public Schools produces learning outcomes for all students without regard to sex, race, creed,
color, national origin, class, socioeconomic status, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender
identity, cognitive/physical ability, disability, diverse language fluency, religion, ancestry, marital
or parental status or any other unlawful basis. Chesterfield County Public Schools is obligated to
embrace the diversity within our school division while eliminating practices that promote
disparities and differences amongst our students and guarantee that all students have the
opportunity to benefit equally. In order to secure the vision of Chesterfield County Public
Schools, the school division will focus on the individual and unique needs of each student by:
• The Superintendent having the authority to establish and maintain an Equity Committee
comprised of members from the community and school division employees to analyze the
current practices of Chesterfield County Public Schools in order to welcome the diverse
population of Chesterfield County.
• The School Board allocating local, state, and federal resources to support equity throughout the
school division including funding, staffing, and instructional resources.
POLICY ANALYSIS 7
• Committing to ensuring that fairness, equity and inclusion are essential principles of our school
system fully integrating these principles into all of our policies, programs, operations, and
practices.
• Adopting a teaching and learning culture that includes high expectations of students and staff,
varied teaching and learning styles, and individualized systemic supports for teachers and
students.
• Creating multiple pathways that widen access to educational opportunities, and lifelong
success.
• Providing high quality, cultural relevant and responsive curricula for all students and teachers.
• Identifying, developing and applying best instructional practices that make a positive difference
for students and groups of students in order to reduce prevalent and persistent achievement gaps.
• Facilitating equitable access to co-curricular and extra-curricular activities, social services,
enrichment and remediation opportunities.
• Engaging, including and collaborating with our families, students, residents, communities, and
stakeholders as the School Board recognizes their active involvement is essential to the School
Board’s own responsibility for effective and equitable governance.
• Maximizing the academic achievement of every child by allocating resources equitably, not
necessary equally.
• Affirming the identity of each student while acknowledging and celebrating differences to
create a sense of belonging for each and every student.
• Providing cultural competency and implicit bias training to Chesterfield County Public School
staff.
POLICY ANALYSIS 8
In order to ensure that Chesterfield County Public Schools uses equity as a lens for resource
allocation, staffing, and the creation of inclusive, instructional environments, the school division
will ask the following guiding questions as a part of the decision-making process:
• Does each decision align with the school division’s mission/vision?
• Which stakeholders are affected by this decision? Is it positive or negative?
• Does the decision-making process create unintended consequences or worsen disparities
amongst stakeholders?
• Are we including those affected by decisions in the decision-making process?
• Has Chesterfield County Public Schools explored all possibilities?
• How sustainable is the outcome of the decision-making process?
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