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Equity and Adequacy

David Barrios García

School of Education CSU, Chico

EDAD 631: Educational Leadership: The Literature Dr. Gulbransen

July 27, 2023

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Glendale Unified School District has three main goals outlined on the LCAP. These goals

are maximizing student achievement, fostering a positive culture of learning, and ensuring the

health and safety of students and employees. The first goal emphasized the importance of

preparing students for college, career, and life by providing them with high-impact instruction.

Goal number two emphasizes the importance of schools being culturally responsive, engaging,

and supportive. Finally, the last LCAP goal is ensuring schools are equipped with highly

qualified teachers, that teaching is standards-aligned, and school facilities are safe. Additionally,

GUSD, in its most recent LCAP Town Hall Meeting in March of 2023, mentioned that it seeks to

ensure there is a balance of compensating employees fairly while providing the best possible

service to students and families.

According to Dr. Oscar Macias, Director of Equity, Access, and Family Engagement, the

district is ensuring they remain relevant, rigorous, and student-centered via STEAM and Magnet

academies, an extensive dual immersion program, featuring dual immersion in Spanish, French,

Italian, German, Korean, Japanese, and Armenian, programs for students with special needs,

independent study programs, and continuation school options. Furthermore, there is a heavy

emphasis on keeping staff happy and taken care of, per Dr. Macias, GUSD spends 85 dollars for

every 100 dollars they get on employee benefits–85 percent. This is the highest in the region.

The district goals were developed with District leadership, the LCAP educational partner

Committee, Superintendent's Parent Advisory Committee, PTAs, District English Language

Advisory Committee members, principals, counselors, teacher specialists, students, and staff.

The district developed multiple surveys for parents, staff, and students to share their perspectives

on school climate, goals, and any changes they thought would be necessary to consider. In

addition to the surveys, there were also three town hall meetings via Zoom that allowed for the
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deliberation of the results of the surveys. The results of these surveys served as the school

climate data necessary to help develop the LCAP goals.

Specifically, some of the needs addressed by students and parents in the survey as they

relate to my specific educational setting–middle school–were a continued need to focus on

emotional regulation, growth mindset, self-efficacy, social awareness, and school safety, and

schedules that maximize learning development for students.

According to the GUSD website, the district's vision is “preparing our students for their

future” and the mission is “maximizing student achievement, fostering students’ social and

emotional growth, and creating a vibrant, inclusive environment where all children can learn and

thrive”. The district is aiming toward a whole-child approach. Overall, the district goals are word

for word the three goals identified in the LCAP. Based on my review of the district LCAP, these

goals do relate to the district’s mission. According to the LCAP, some actionable steps the

district is taking in meeting this specific goal are increasing support for GATE students, and

English learners, and interventions.

As far as my specific school site–Toll Middle School– goals are to create lifelong

learners, problem solvers, and critical thinkers, the school seeks to accomplish this by

“cultivating a supportive, collaborative, respectful culture, and ensuring equitable opportunities

for all students to reach their full potential”. Toll Middle School’s mission and vision seem to

align well with the LCAP goals.

I was not able to witness firsthand the steps this school took this year in support of the

LCAP. However, after talking with the principal, everything she mentioned to me is reflective of

what is on the school's website. Toll Middle School is an International Spanish Academy so it

houses one of the dual immersion programs, Spanish. In addition to Spanish, Toll also has dual
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immersion programs in Italian, Armenian, and Korean. Furthermore, based on their website–and

an interview with the principal–Toll seeks to support GATE scholars through the site and

district-level activities like spelling bees, invention convention classes, and math field days.

Aside from academic opportunities at the site level, students at Toll Middle School have a variety

of extracurricular athletic or club opportunities. The goal of this middle school is to encourage

the development of well-rounded students which does connect with the LCAP goals addressed

previously.