IDEA Public Schools was founded on the radical belief in the unlimited potential of all students and has a long history of democratizing excellent education.
With this in mind, we continue to be committed to a mission of “College for ALL children,” ensuring more students from low-income backgrounds, students who would be the first generation in their families to attend college, and students who come from groups historically underrepresented in higher education have access to realizing their dreams by first completing their college degree on the path to becoming the future leaders of tomorrow.
To achieve our mission, we commit to be a diverse, equitable, inclusive and anti-racist organization, where we honor and include the voices, values, and beliefs of all our students, staff, alumni, families, and community members. This is essential to students’ academic, social, and collective growth, as well as to achieving equity and social justice across our schools, our organization, and our communities.
To realize this vision, we work collectively to increase our cultural competency and capacity to productively engage across all lines of difference. This allows us to identify, disrupt, and rebuild more equitable policies and practices for all our students, families, and staff. We recognize and are committed to the continuous learning necessary to be an organization that strengthens diversity, uplifts equity, and honors inclusion.
The presence of different types of people from a wide range of cultures and identities, and with different perspectives and experiences that include, but are not limited to, the following: race, ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, language, socioeconomic background, physical and cognitive ability, religion and political affiliations.
We create an environment where students and staff members of all backgrounds are made to feel welcome and encouraged to succeed.
The process of driving for equally high outcomes for all by equitably distributing our resources and ensuring that barriers such as biased policies or practices that prevent equal opportunities for historically underserved or underrepresented groups to achieve fairness and realize their potential do not exist in our organization.
We continually assess policies and practices and ensure the allocation of financial and human resources based upon fairness and confirm that all students and schools get what they need to be successful.
The process of intentionally putting diversity into action by creating an environment of involvement, respect, and belongingness — where the richness of ideas, backgrounds, and perspectives are harnessed to create value.
Holding diversity, equity, and inclusion trainings for our staff to foster deeper understanding of these issues in alignment to our organization-wide anti-racist and anti-bias commitment towards action.
At IDEA we recognize that racism, bias, and privilege exist in society. We are committed to an organizational culture that promotes awareness, kindness, and inclusivity for our students and staff, and supports their path to positively impact our broader society. We are committed to recognizing the impact of racism and privilege, and commit as an organization to have equitable practices, policies, and structures.
CONTINUALLY EXAMINING mindsets, behaviors, and structures by engaging in ongoing diversity, equity, and inclusion trainings to build awareness, knowledge, and skills and engage in open discourse.
CHALLENGING the status quo and continuously examining our actions to ensure we do not have practices, policies, and systems that may contribute to inequities.
ADDRESSING the inequities that exist in our schools through acknowledging the broader social and historical context of the communities we serve and sharing power through inviting our students, families, and staff to be a part of the decision-making process in our schools.
ADVOCATING for our students and families by publicly engaging on issues that affect them and the communities we serve.
CULTIVATING an environment of deep belonging by prioritizing relationship, understanding the strengths and assets of the communities we serve, and embedding those
strengths and assets into our schools through living out our core values.
ONGOING learning and development to close any gaps between our commitments and where we are currently, which requires humility to grow, adjust, and change—even if it’s uncomfortable.
Commitment Statement (English)
Commitment Statement (Español)
Phillip Garza (Chief Diversity Officer), Khalil Graham (Principal) and Bethany Solis (Director of Leadership Development) jump started the first DEI development at Executive Leadership Council
Phillip Garza, Chief Success Officer, began to develop a clear point of view to push the DEI work further
A group of Executive Leadership Council members were selected to help support the DEI efforts at IDEA
A Director of DEI was hired to support the districts DEI vision and strategy through a listening tour of thousands of IDEA stakeholders
DEI became an org-wide priority and we worked to define what DEI at IDEA meant and begin the process of naming our commitment to being an anti-racist and anti-bias organization and create a plan to live into that commitment
When Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) became an organization-wide priority in 2020, IDEA Public Schools created a year-long plan for our DEI vision, strategy and plan.
CEO, Chiefs and Executive Leadership Council align on path forward of DEI as a priority and being a leader in the anti-racist and anti-bias movement
30-hour DEI professional development pilot to build DEI competencies, mindsets, knowledge and skills
Open forums across the organization to get feedback from staff on biggest issues to tackle through the DEI priority
Committee to help set the vision and direction for our DEI work in partnership with Promise 54
Promise 54 conducted DEI surveys to help assess policies and practices that impact staff and culture across the organization
Promise 54 conducted focus groups to gather qualitative data to further contextualize the equity survey data
Committee created to support our Black students and staff to ensure they are feeling seen, heard and valued
Committee created to recommend any shifts to student culture
Committee-led group of teachers and teacher leaders to help create an anti-racist rubric to be used to develop new curriculum and evaluate current curriculum with a lens towards anti-racism
DEI professional development offered to IDEA board members to develop a common language to address race and bias-related issues IDEA is confronting
Support organization leaders to bring DEI into their leadership through 360-degree reviews (feedback from peers/ manager/ other staff) and coaching for chief-level leaders, five three-hour long DEI capacity building sessions for all ELC members
To reflect the best of who we are and who we aspire to become
In partnership with Promise 54, our Chiefs, ELC, and DEI Committee created a multi-year strategic plan to codify our priorities, align resources, and set measurable goals to achieve over the next three years
Board Approval of DEI Strategic Plan and publication of our DEI Commitment on our website
Launched our first Inclusive Leadership Series: Mitigating Bias Module for all managers across the organization
Leadership Towards Equity Series is offered to all principals, regional leadership teams and national vice presidents
DEI Team expanded with the addition of a vice president and DEI coordinator
2115 W. Pike Blvd.
Weslaco, TX 78596
Main: (956) 377-8000
Fax: (956) 447-3796
IDEA Public Schools National Board Members: Collin Sewell – Chair, Ed Rivera – Vice-Chair and Treasurer, Ryan Vaughan – Secretary, Reba Cardenas McNair, David Earl, Erich Holmsten, Michael Adams, Gary Lindgren, Theresa Barrera-Shaw, Nanette Cocero.
