Jordan Else, a member of
AASPIRE
and
Ann
Arbor
resident,
said
she
would
like to see an increase in
urgency regarding the rollout
of the plan and said the
superintendent needs to lead
the implementation.
“Our concerns come in the
fact that this is taking time,”
Else said. “We really would
like a greater sense of urgency.
When we talk to other districts
… the things that we hear are
that we need urgency and that
we need this to come from the
top down.”
One major critique of AAPS’s
equity plan was its lack of
specifics, according to Else.
She said through AASPIRE’s
investigation of past successful
equity plans in other school
districts, they found common
themes.
Successful
plans
properly
defined the problem schools
were
facing
and
provided
specifics
on
accountability,
which is something the AAPS
equity plan lacks, Else said.
One of the successful equity
plans was the Campaign for
Racial Equity in Our Schools in
Chapel Hill, N.C.
“Through
this
problem
identification and looking at
the data, successful plans, every
single one, include specific
measures and accountability,”
Else said. “When we look at
the best practices, they all
included all stakeholders at
the beginning of the plan. Not
having teachers, not having
students and not having parents
in this plan is almost sure to set
it up where it is not going to
meet everyone’s needs.”
Stacey Ebron, a member of
AASPIRE and the mother of
two boys at Lawton Elementary
School,
discussed
how
identifying the problem is a key
step in proper implementation.
“You really need to have
an
understanding
and
acknowledgement of the ways
that the school system is set
up to benefit white children
and disadvantage children of
color,” Ebron said. “When we
look at Chapel Hill’s problem
statement and AAPS’s equity
plan, what we are missing is the
understanding of the problem.
The mission statement is to
increase equity, but there is
no explanation of what the
problem is, the goals and the
objectives.”
Angela Guy-Lee, a member of
AASPIRE and mother of three
AAPS
students,
discussed
how
AAPS’s
definition
of
equity does not address the
responsibility leadership holds
in solving equity problems in
schools.
“When
everyone
is
responsible, no one is actually
responsible,”
Guy-Lee
said.
“This is a game that institutions
play, and what they say is ‘All
of us have a role in fixing this,
but all of us don’t have power
to implement change.’ Equity
at its core is about power.
You can’t even create a power
statement that doesn’t address
the power differentials. This
kind of statement sounds good,
it’s performative, it’s fluffy, but
it doesn’t actually hold anyone
who’s getting paid to do this
work accountable.”
In response to AASPIRE’s
critiques, Johnson said it is
important to note that the plan
is only a draft.
“We are still in somewhat of
a starting point,” Johnson said.
AASPIRE also researched
the equity plans forJefferson
County
Public
Schools
in
Kentucky,
which
included
specifics such as quantifiable
goals
and
timeframes.
On
promoting
equity-centered
leadership,
JCPS
included
specifics such as funding and a
racial equity analysis protocol
that was used to review the
entire district’s school policy.
Ebron
reiterated
the
importance of speeding up
the process and having more
community representation in
tweaking the equity plan.
“It’s past the time that
parents
and
children
and
community members should be
at the table helping to improve
the equity plan,” Ebron said.
“We realize that we are in a
pandemic, but we can’t wait any
longer because our children are
still suffering in the Ann Arbor
Public Schools systems.”
Regarding
further
partnership between AASPIRE
and the BOE, Ebron said they
hope the information presented
at
this
meeting
would
be
brought to leadership in order
to implement changes sooner
rather than later.
“What we hope is, since you
are not going to let us have
access to Dr. Swift (AAPS
superintendent) or the district
leadership
team,
that
you
will take these concerns back
to that team and bring them
up as part of your board’s
responsibility in governing this
equity plan,” Ebron said. “We
hope we have given you some
fruitful thought that you can
act on, because that is what this
group is all about.”
Daily Staff Reporter Caroline
Wang
can
be
reached
at
wangca@umich.edu.
In 2021, more than 1,700 transfer
students enrolled at the University of
Michigan, according to the Office of
Undergraduate Admissions.While the
transfer process varies by student and
the institution they are transferring
from, over the past year transfer stu-
dents all had to adapt to a virtual cam-
pus community.
As the University returns to a mostly
in-person semester, transfer students
shared with The Michigan Daily their
experiences and the organizations that
best supported them on campus dur-
ing the pandemic as well as during their
first semester on campus.
Several students transferred to the
University to attend their dream school,
as they were not admitted to the Uni-
versity out of high school. Kinesiology
senior Lior Kolton transferred to the
University from Michigan State Univer-
sity after his sophomore year. Kolton
said he did not originally intend to
transfer but that the switch was worth it
once he found his community.
“Once I did really well in my classes
(at MSU), I thought why not try it out
and see what happens,” Kolton said. ”I
think the biggest adjustment was trying
to find my community on campus and
find student orgs to get involved in. I’m
in a pre-law fraternity that’s amazing, so
trying to find that took a semester, and it
was a little stressful, but I was very lucky
to have already had a big school experi-
ence so I kind of knew what to expect.”
LSA senior Charlotte Gamperle
transferred to the University as a junior
from Northeastern University in Bos-
ton because she said she wanted a more
conventional college experience, as
Northeastern utilizes a student co-op
program in which students alternate
between working and taking classes
each semester.
“I just felt like what I was lacking (at
Northeastern) was community and the
traditional college experience,” Gam-
perle said. “It kind of detracted from my
overall college experience because I felt
like I was a younger professional rather
than a college student, and I realized
that I am in no hurry to rush into the
professional world if I’m going to be in it
for the rest of my life.”
When applying to college out of high
school, Gamperle said the University
was not on her radar. After researching
the best schools for student life, she said
she discovered the University almost
immediately and was drawn to the cul-
ture of school spirit.
Entering campus in the fall of 2020,
Gamperle said she knew the adjustment
would not be easy, as she was seeking
an inclusive campus community dur-
ing the peak of the pandemic. She said
being part of the Global Scholars Pro-
gram and joining student organizations
helped, and she also tried to reach out to
as many students as possible.
“Even though it was uncomfortable
a lot of the time, I would basically reach
out to people one on one and ask to meet
up socially distanced, and I did that
until it got cold,” Gamperle said. “I think
it was worth it in the long run because I
have a good set of people now.”
Gamperle said Transfer Connec-
tions, a student organization that facili-
tates peer and faculty mentoring, helped
her find her place on campus.
According to the Office of New
Student Programs, through Transfer
Connections each transfer student
serving as a mentee, is matched with
a former transfer student mentor and
faculty mentor to assist them in finding
on-campus opportunities after trans-
ferring.
“They’ve been really helpful tailor-
ing my Michigan experience to me,
and just being there for me,” Gamperle
said. “This year I actually came back as a
mentor myself. I have a group of 18 men-
tees that have come in this year, and my
job is to meet with them as often as I can
and plan social events.”
Other on-campus resources for
transfer students include M-Connect
and
SuccessConnects.
M-Connect
assists students looking to transfer from
community colleges, and SuccessCon-
nects pairs transfer students with an
individual mentor to help them find
communities on campus.
Kolton, who transferred right before
the pandemic began, said the Universi-
ty’s orientation program was extremely
helpful.
“The orientation they ran was fan-
tastic, and I met a cool friend of mine,”
Kolton said. “He’s actually in class
with me but transferred over as well. I
thought that was a really good way to
help me adjust.”
In an email to The Daily, Michael
Hartman, assistant director of LSA
Student Recruitment for Transfer Ini-
tiatives and Partnerships, said assisting
transfer students during the pandemic
has been more difficult than normal.
“Some of our transfers will have
spent more of their semester learning
remotely than they have had on campus
by the time they graduate,” Hartman
wrote.
Gamperle said the virtual events
planned by the University during the
completely remote semester when she
transferred were not beneficial.
“Because so much of the concern
when you’re transferring is all about
finding a community, I think that was
really difficult to do in the virtual for-
mat,” Gamperle said. “I didn’t really gain
anything from the University in terms
of finding community here or finding
my place. It was more self-directed of
me seeking people out and seeking out
my own resources like Transfer Con-
nections.”
Hartman said resources such as
the LSA Transfer Student Center, the
Undergraduate Research Opportunity
Program, optiMize as well as Transfer
Connections are helpful for transfer
students to become more embedded in
the University community and engage
with other transfer students..
“Going to office hours to connect
with faculty can make all the difference
in improving the transfer experience,”
Hartman said.
Like most freshmen, Gamperle said
she experienced the nervousness that
accompanies arriving on campus for the
first time and emphasized the impor-
tance of putting yourself out there.
“I know it can be really hard and
uncomfortable, but I think it’s defi-
nitely worth it to try and to meet as
many people as possible,” Gamperle
said. “Reach out to professors, just try to
make as many connections as you can,
because Michigan does have so many
resources that are waiting to be taken
advantage of.”
Daily Staff Reporter Kaitlyn Luckoff
can be reached at kluckoff@umich.edu.
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
News
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