Washington County Public Schools sees little diversity among top leadership

Roughly 3% of the leaders at Washington County Public Schools identified themselves as people of color, while nearly 27% of the student population is Black or Hispanic.

Of 228 administrators and supervisors, seven identified themselves as non-white, a school district official said.

Of the 21,939 students who attend Washington County Public Schools, 3,201 are Black and 2,667 are Hispanic/Latino.

With student populations across Washington County becoming more diverse, school system leaders say they are working to hire more administrators who are people of color. Yet the vast majority are white, as are all seven members of the elected school board.

"WCPS values a diverse workforce and makes it a priority to recruit people of color in all roles across the school system," Erin Anderson, the school district's communications officer, stated in an email. "These efforts are led by the Human Resources Department and are supported by staff throughout the organization."

For comparison, Washington County Public Schools employs 1,889 teachers. Of those, 36 teachers report their race as Black or African American. Another 30 teachers report their race as Hispanic/Latino.

WCPS employees, including teachers and administrators, are not required to indicate their racial identity on their employment records, making precise details of the workforce unclear.

Among the efforts Anderson said the school system is making are:

• Marketing through strategic digital initiatives to people of color.

• Expanding the WCPS network by trying to recruit students and graduates from historically Black colleges and universities.

• Hosting job fair “road shows” in which hiring opportunities are featured at local schools and promoted to families and community members.

• Reflecting diversity in WCPS hiring promotions.

• Developing a position for the supervisor of equity and excellence, which supports student and staff equity and diversity initiatives

• Celebrating and recognizing cultural and ethnic uniqueness and achievement across the school system, like Black History Month and Hispanic Heritage Month.

• Encouraging current staff to pursue additional career opportunities Maryland accelerates teaching program and mentorship.

"WCPS is not alone in addressing the challenge of employing a diverse workforce," Anderson said. "This is a common experience across the nation for school systems both large and small.

"It is critical that our school community and our larger Washington County community welcome and embrace people of all backgrounds, ethnicities, cultures, identities, orientations, and life experiences to successfully recruit and retain a diverse workforce in our schools and in other professions," she said.

For reference, Washington County has a population of 154,705 people, according to the 2020 U.S. Census. Of that number, 82% are white, 12.5% are Black, 5.8% are Latino, 1.9% are Asian, 0.3% are American Indians and Alaska Native, and 0.1% are Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander. The Census Bureau states 3.1% of the county's population is of two or more races.

Revolving door: Washington County Public Schools grapples with turnover of administrators

Lack of diversity: 'She feels the disconnect': Mother speaks on lack of Black teachers at daughter's school

Classroom challenges: Teachers in Washington County outline challenges, particularly with young students

Recruiting continues

"I can tell you with all sincerity that all those on the (school) board want to increase diversity in the school system," school board President Melissa Williams said. "It's a problem in the state of Maryland and it's a problem across the country."

Williams said the school system is doing everything it can to attract a more diverse leadership.

As an example, she said school system leaders have placed billboards advertising employment with WCPS in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area, where there is a more diverse population.

"We're doing all we can, but it's not an easy fix," she said.

Rachel Kane-Kirkpatrick, chairperson of the Washington County Association of Administrators and Supervisors, which represents school system administrators, said she has been involved in many of the efforts to attract a more diverse leadership at WCPS.

She regularly visits historically Black colleges and universities in an effort to recruit minority students graduating in education.

"We're just not getting the applicants to apply," she said. "We want the staff to reflect the community."

Kane-Kirkpatrick said the students also need to see not only administrators and supervisors, but all WCPS employees who look like them.

The school system actively "recruits all qualified people to fill various positions," Washington County Board of Education member Linda Murray stated in an email. "The Human Resources Department works diligently to advertise positions on billboards, tractor-trailers, college websites, etc. We are always encouraging people of all ethnicities to apply to our school system."

It's about hiring the best

School board member Michael Guessford said it's about searching for the candidate with the best qualification regardless of diversity issues, but he noted the school system is dealing with a shortage of employees in all areas of the school system.

"We have a worker shortage," he said. "We can't be choosy or picky. You don't look at the book cover, you look at the book. We really can't be choosy. … We have to hire the best person available."

Washington County Public Schools is also dealing with turnover of administrators.

The school district has seen 15 administrators leave their jobs since mid-August, school officials reported previously. But in a recent interview Terri L. Baker, WCPS executive director of human resources, said there were seven administrative openings.

Guessford said administrators are going to the private sector.

"The general sector is wide open with jobs, so for me I'm looking at the substance of (a candidate), and I look at the background," he said.

"For me personally, it's something that's never crossed my mind," said school board member Darrell Evans. "The superintendent and his hiring team have hired the best people at the time.

"We have great leaders," he said. "If an applicant happens to be diverse, then we hire them if they are the best people for the job, but the pool of applicants is not very large."

Sherry Greenfield is an education reporter, covering Washington County Public Schools.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Mail: School system lacks racial diversity among top leadership