Policies and Procedures
Policies and procedures are checked for accuracy when they are published in our manual.
To verify the most current versions of policies and procedures, click on the link below.
Here are Downingtown Area School District's Policies and Procedures.
Policies
Policies serve as the governing tenets of the school district. District policies are most often created for three main reasons:
- In response to state or federal laws,
- In light of legal precedents established by court decisions, and
- As a means of defining best practices that relate to issues of local concern.
Policy
A Policy is the Board’s statement of belief, conviction, and expectation of a given issue as it relates to school district governance.
Procedure
A Procedure may be developed as an extension of a policy. While not all policies will have procedures, many do.
Educational Equity Policy (DASD #832)
On November 10, 2021, the Downingtown Area School District Board of School Directors approved the new Educational Equity Policy - #832. This is a brand new policy and the purpose of this email is to provide you with a brief summary.
Policy Purpose:
The purpose of the policy is to prioritize the principle of educational equity through the fair and just allocation of resources, opportunities and treatment of students and staff based upon each individual student’s or staff’s needs.
Commitments:
- We will promptly identify and address barriers that cultivate achievement gaps and/or opportunity gaps for students or staff.
- We will ensure that each student’s educational achievement is neither predicted nor predetermined by explicit or implicit biases, and that staff are not denied professional opportunities due to explicit or implicit biases.
Major Points:
- We are committed to fairness and justice for all students and staff regardless of background.
- We will conduct periodic educational equity audits to benchmark educational equity in the district and address inequities.
- We will display conduct and will foster school climates that are equity focused and culturally responsive and supported through relevant training.
- Our Educational Equity Audits will include enrollment and attendance data, achievement indicators, and behavior indicators broken out by student background.
Items to be Emphasized:
- We will maintain high expectations for all students while providing multiple pathways to success and participation in challenging programs, school activities, and co-curricular activities.
- Holding ourselves to being responsive to and seeking out diverse cultural perspectives, identities, linguistic diversity, and other needs of students and their families by providing equitable instructional materials, resources, and access to services daily.
As this relates to:
Creating a Welcoming and Inclusive Environment
Fostering Partnerships and Inclusion
Being Data Focused
Maintaining an Equity Lens
Developing Cultural Competency
Expanding Workforce Diversity
Offering Professional Development
