coe-staff: A statement from Kent McIntosh, director of Educational and Community Supports

[Dianna Carrizales-Engelmann]


The following message is sent on behalf of Kent McIntosh, Director of Educational and Community Supports


A statement from Kent McIntosh, director of Educational and Community Supports

Like others, I am horrified and outraged by the murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery and so many other Black people at the hands of law enforcement and our fellow citizens. The protests across the country, with the backdrop of COVID-19, have highlighted our society’s racial disparities across social systems.

I have to grapple with what I have failed to do as an organizational leader over the past two weeks. What was my initial responses to COVID-19 in terms of providing resources to the field? Why did I not have a proportionate response to state-sponsored police murders of Black people? The reality is that my silence and inactivity are inexcusable. I’m grateful to a colleague for pointing it out to me.

It is on all of us, and is particularly critical for directors like me, to look for it, call it out, and take steps to end systemic racism. That includes amplifying the voices that are routinely ignored and silenced to make Black lives matter.

At ECS, we met as a unit on Friday and restarted our pandemic-paused ally initiative to continue the work of bringing in Black scholars for shared professional development in the COE. We are committed to being an active partner in this work. We are building an improved SWIS Equity report. We are continuing our project to review our recruitment strategies. We are being more vocal with our PBIS Apps users about the need to address racial atrocities head on. All of this work will be situated within our longstanding Climate, Culture, and Equity Committee so that it is institutionalized. These tasks aren’t nearly enough, but they are a starting point for a long-term, dedicated effort in this work for our unit.

Thank you,
Kent

Kent McIntosh, PhD
Philip H. Knight Chair of Special Education
Director, Educational and Community Supports
Co-Director, OSEP Center on PBIS



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