The Equity First Strategic Planning Team is fighting for student equity, while students may not even know what equity is.

“Equity, in a nutshell, is collectively ensuring that everyone in the community has what they need to be their best selves, achieving their goals, and strive for a just society,” said Dr. Diego Luna, a professor in Highline’s department of Ethnic and Gender Studies.

On May 2, the Equity Task Force held Town Hall meetings for students, faculty, and staff to discuss the new rough drafts for Highline’s new mission, vision, and value statements. These new statements have a new focus on equity, social justice, and acceptance.

The efforts of the task force are to “support Highline College to develop and sustain an equity-first strategic plan that sets the vision for a more equitable institution for students, colleagues, and the community,” the Equity Task Force said in a PowerPoint slide during the Town Hall meetings.

Highline President Dr. John Mosby said the town halls were useful for the college to continue to make progress on equity issues. 

“The meeting was well attended and organized. There was a brief presentation and then people went into breakout sessions to answer the prompt questions,” said Dr. Mosby.

“Afterwards, they were brought back to discuss and document as a group. I appreciated that there will be multiple chances and opportunities for individuals to provide their feedback,” he said.

“We have a lot of work to do in terms of achieving our goals of student success but we are heading in the right direction and have already made some improvements in our services and delivery,” Dr. Mosby said on Wednesday.

After internally reviewing the statements, the task force has found that there were too many buzzwords and was too decontextualized from the community. 

The following is the new statement:

“As an anti-racist institution, Highline College provides equitable access, opportunity, and success for students learning and living on and around the unceded traditional village sites of the Duwamish, Muckleshoot, and Puyallup tribes. Highline College staff, faculty, and administrators are committed to continually developing and maintaining anti-racist, culturally responsive, and inclusive curriculum, support services, and community partnerships. We partner with our students as they envision, plan, and achieve their academic and professional goals. Through collaboration across campus and with local and global partners, we seek to achieve and sustain a campus environment rooted in social justice that appreciates, serves, and supports all employees as they create the conditions for student success in and outside of the classroom.”

At the student forum, committee members explained the vision and mission statement for about 30 minutes, and then asked for feedback.

Students in attendance via Zoom were mostly quiet, except for one student who said that students shouldn’t be punished for missing classes when it’s beyond their control. 

But students in general may not fully grasp the idea of equity. A small sampling of students on campus this week revealed only some knew what the term currently means. 

“It’s money, I think,” said one student.

Students did have opinions about how the college is handling their diverse backgrounds. Some approved, while others had concerns. 

“That’s why I came to this college, because of the people. Because when I came, I saw that they respected their students,” said one Spanish-speaking student.

Others were less impressed. 

“I think they just focus on one group or two. For example; last month was a very important month for Muslim people, but there was no mention of our important holidays,” said another student.

If you would like to reach out to the Equity Task Force with any comments email equityfirst@highline.edu