Parents plan to continue discussing discrimination, lack of resources at North Kitsap schools

Following a November meeting with the North Kitsap School District in which Latino parents and students shared experiences of being discriminated against or facing racial bullying in North Kitsap schools, community members have organized a second event in Poulsbo on Tuesday, aimed at creating a safe space to continue discussing how to address issues that parents say remain unsolved.

This week the school district told the Kitsap Sun it is investigating the reported concerns of discrimination, racism and lack of resources for non-English speaking parents, but didn't offer details of what has been done regarding specific issues brought up by families two months ago.

Tuesday's event, to be held at 6:30 p.m. at Vibe Coworks in Poulsbo, at 19225 8th Ave. NE, will center the experiences of Latino students and families and set the stage for other community leaders to share their support and commitment to addressing systemic barriers some students in the Kitsap schools system are facing, according to organizers.

Danielle Castillejo, a therapist whose children attend North Kitsap schools and is helping organize the event, said improvements have not been seen in schools in response to the November meeting.

"The racism by teachers hasn't been solved. There have been more reports from Kingston High School of racial identity and identity slurs against students of color. And then parents still don't have access to the translators they need," Castillejo said.

Castillejo said some parents have contacted the school district's English language coordinator for help but haven't gotten any response. And Spanish-speaking parents are still not receiving communication from the schools that have been translated from English.

In the November meeting, parents and students shared stories of racial bullying on school buses and being discriminated against by teachers. One parent shared a story of her son being told by a teacher he eats too many burritos, and another reported that his daughter was told to go back to Mexico.

More: Latino parents, students say they face racism, discrimination at North Kitsap High

North Kitsap School District didn't confirm the number of investigations it has started in wake of the conversation in November, or offer any results after following up on examples shared in November.

"We have both investigated prior reported concerns and we are currently investigating any newly surfaced concerns. Due to student and staff privacy laws we do not discuss active investigations," said North Kitsap School District spokesperson Jenn Markaryan in an email to the Kitsap Sun on Thursday.

The school district said districtwide communications coming from the NKSD main office, including but not limited to emails, flyers, automated calls, emergency notifications, and district news, have been translated into Spanish for the past decade. The website has had translation options available at the top of every page for the past several years.

School sites have been reminded to ensure that their communications are translated when sent to families, Markaryan said.

Markaryan said individuals who need translation services may contact their school principal or the district English Learner services at (360) 396-3561. If interpretation services are needed for a school or district-sponsored meeting, that may be arranged by the host of the meeting, she said.

In the upcoming school year, the school district will be implementing "a new communication tool" that will further support two-way communication in messages and email, translated forms, and translated updates or news in a family’s preferred home language, according to Markaryan.

"We have offered both translation and interpretation services both in-person and via phone for families for over a decade, and we will continue to do so," Markaryan said.

However, Castillejo pointed to recent important school announcements that were not translated. In one recent example, an email to families at Poulsbo Middle School announced the death of a student on Thursday and provided information on counseling resources available for the students. On Friday, another email to families and staff confirmed that a rumored threat was determined to be unsubstantiated. Neither message was translated to Spanish, Castillejo said.

The group organizing the town hall also stated that there aren't enough language acquisition resources and schools often left peers to tutor their fellow students for language learning. The group requested the district offer services designed and supported for language acquisition, instead of reading or literacy development, they said.

The conversation in the town hall event will be recorded and documented to help make future actions for the community to address the issues, said Brenda Calderon of Kitsap Advocating for Immigrant Rights and Equality (KAIRE), another organizer of the event.

“It's really important for us to come together as a community and address those needs and hear them out and find ways of moving forward together...creating a change in the education system in our community,” Calderon said.

More information regarding the town hall can be found at https://www.kitsaplatinocommunity.org.

This article originally appeared on Kitsap Sun: Latino parent group meeting with North Kitsap schools over race issues