SAN DIEGO (KGTV) -- Last year, a new social media account called Black in Poway Unified School District quickly began gaining followers.
The account allowed people to anonymously post about their experiences with racism in the district.
“We did not expect it to get this big.” The young women behind it, sisters Ekene and Nene Okolo say the page has since evolved into something bigger.
“We want to continue educating people through our platform about educational equity and racial justice that's basically our goal moving forward.”
Their voices grabbed the attention of the San Diego Office of Education, which asked them to speak at this week’s 2021 Equity Conference.
“I just keep thinking, we can learn from them right, how to engage people.” Dr. Fabiola Bagula is the head of the Office of Education’s Equity Department. She says this year’s event will take place from Tuesday through Friday and will feature different kinds of speakers. The event is open to anyone, especially students and parents who want to hear the latest thinking on how to achieve true equity throughout the county.
“Different techniques, points of view, different theories, perspectives that are arising and emerging.” Both Dr. Bagula and the sisters say part of creating change is understanding the difference between equality and equity. Simply put, equality means giving everyone the same resources, while equity involves distributing resources based on need.
“Allocating resources to groups that are disadvantaged and held back whereas other groups might not face those obstacles.”
