Ask HSC to add a DEI-focused member to the Superintendent Screening team
The Holliston School Committee
UPDATE: Since originally posting this petition, we have learned that Holliston’s Director of SEL & Equity was added to the Superintendent Screening Team at the end of the Dec 11 HSC meeting. We appreciate this step and the expertise he brings. Our request remains for continued dialogue with the School Committee and for the inclusion of a member whose sole focus is reviewing candidates through a dedicated DEI lens.
This petition calls on the Holliston School Committee to strengthen the Superintendent search and long-term district leadership by adding a member to the Screening Team whose sole focus is reviewing candidates through a DEI lens.
By signing, you affirm that you expect district leadership to respond to the findings of the Equity Audit and uphold the commitments outlined in the HPS 2022–2027 Strategic Plan. Specifically, you support:
- Adding a member to the Superintendent Screening Team whose sole focus is reviewing candidates through a DEI lens
- A search process aligned with the district’s Strategic Plan and Equity Audit
- Evaluating every candidate’s ability to lead with equity, cultural responsiveness, and community partnership
Learn more on the Diverse Holliston blog.
Petition by
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To:
The Holliston School Committee
From:
[Your Name]
Dear Members of the Holliston School Committee,
We are writing as signatories of the Diverse Holliston petition calling on the School Committee to strengthen the Superintendent search and long-term district leadership by adding a member to the Selection Team whose sole focus is reviewing candidates through a diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) lens.
While we appreciate the district’s efforts to recruit from a diverse candidate pool, diversity in applicants alone is not sufficient to address the complex challenges facing our schools. It is imperative that we hire a Superintendent who can understand and navigate issues affecting people from diverse backgrounds and who can lead the district in implementing practices that foster inclusion, safety, and a sense of belonging for all students and staff.
To do this effectively, the Selection Team must include at least one member whose sole responsibility is to assess candidates’ strengths and gaps in this area — someone with the appropriate training, experience, or lived expertise to evaluate leadership through a DEI lens.
Members of Diverse Holliston have been told by members of the School Committee that the Screening Team is “not set in stone.” Given this, we respectfully urge the School Committee to add at least one DEI-focused member to the Selection Team while there is still time to do so.
Thank you for your consideration and for your service to Holliston Public Schools.
Sincerely,
The undersigned signatories of the petition