Pike Township Schools Equity Council member steps down amid teacher contract dispute

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — A member of the Pike Township Schools Equity Council has stepped down, claiming the district’s failure to negotiate new teacher contracts is impacting the council’s work.

For the sixth time this school year, several students were on an e-learning day Thursday because of teacher absences.

Former council member Deb Dunlevy says the negotiations have had the greatest impact on students. She explained her frustration in her resignation letter the the superintendent, saying the equity council can’t do its work “without the involvement of quality teachers with adequate equity training and experience.”

“Just the idea that we would not be investing in them, just indicated to me that there wasn’t actually the ground level commitment to carrying out these equity initiatives that I hoped there was,” Dunlevy said.

Her position with the district is strictly on a volunteer basis, but she says the council — which is made up of both staff and community members — has made some serious changes in schools over the years.

“I actually was really pleased at the amount of direct action that was being taken,” Dunlevy said. “Not just sitting in meetings and talking, which is mostly what we do, but then following through with direct actions. For example, one of the goals we set was for our teachers to be trained and implement some culturally relevant types of instruction.”

You can read her full letter to the superintendent here:

Dear Dr. Flora,

I am writing to officially resign from my work with Pike’s Equity Council. 

The events of the last several months have convinced me that the leadership of this council is only interested in the appearance of pursuing equity and not the action that is necessary to make our district more equitable in fact.

Aware that since I am not an employee of Pike there was likely much I did not not understand, I have investigated as much as possible during these last months of labor disputes and waited to see signs of the commitment to equity that you have previously expressed. I have spoken at length with a parent who is an accountant and has looked carefully at Pike’s budget. I have spoken with many teachers on all levels, both members and non-members of the union, and have found detailed information about what is happening. Still, I hoped that speaking out and making our support of teachers heard would be enough to influence what must certainly already be your desire.

But the public announcement of two new offers toward the teachers followed by the information that neither of those offers contained raises for the experienced teachers who most needed it has finally convinced me that you are not negotiating in good faith and have no intention of doing any more than the law forces you to do. This is not a commitment to equity. 
I and others on this council have put in hours of unpaid time in the hope of moving our district toward more equitable practices, but I now see that other priorities will always take precedence.
Dr. Flora, I urge you to consider the work we have done in the past three years.

After identifying the equity needs in our schools, we developed a strategic plan with three main goals. 1. By May of 2024, 75% of MSD of Pike Township staff will implement Culturally Sustaining Practices (CSP) that support an equitable learning environment. 2. By July 1, 2024, programs within MSD of Pike Township are accessible to all and reflect the demographics of the district. 3. Using quarter 1-3 of the 2018-2020 school years as baseline data, the number of discipline referrals at each individual campus of Black/African American students will reduce by 20% by July 1, 2024. 
Each of these goals, the entirety of our work, depends for implementation on the involvement of quality teachers with adequate equity training and experience. To work toward Goal 1, we have invested countless hours (and also funds) in professional development to train teachers in culturally sustaining practices. We have chosen Equity Facilitators for each building from among our teachers and staff. For Goal 2, we have discussed at length the need for continued professional development in the selection for our high ability programs.

Currently those who best understand how to identify high ability students are the HA teachers who have paid for their own HA training. To achieve Goal 3, teachers and other staff have been selected from each building to spend after-hours time analyzing discipline referrals and coming up with plans to improve the way referrals are handled. Many, if not most, of these Equity Facilitators and discipline committee members are experienced teachers in the pay category that is least competitive with other districts, meaning that these valuable members of our on-the-ground equity work are at high risk of leaving our district. 

Knowing this as I do, I cannot see any purpose in continuing to attend meetings and discuss equity initiatives that are doomed to failure through a lack of commitment to the kind of self-reflective and highly trained teachers and staff that we need to implement them. 

I and my family remain committed to Pike schools and to pursuing equity in our community. But from now on we will focus our time on working with those who actually share our commitment.

In a statement, a district spokesperson said: “Our equity council does critical work and it is always disheartening to lose a passionate member. As a district, we value our educators and staff and are committed to working toward a fair and responsible resolution. Unfortunately, inaccurate information is circulating in regards to ongoing negotiations. We will continue to follow the process, negotiate in good faith, and work toward short and long-term solutions that will allow us to make significant advancements in employee compensation.”

Right now, the district and the teachers union are waiting for a mediator to hopefully settle the negotiations. A date for when that will happen has not been made available to News 8.