The Importance of Communication in Diverse K-12 Populations

The US Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently published a study of the student population in K-12 Education that highlights increased diversity as a result of movement across the country over the previous decade. But despite the increase in diverse populations, we continue to witness a disturbing trend of racial, ethnic, and economic division. 

The widespread efforts to increase diversity in schools are working, but it begs the question, are we doing everything in our power to serve diverse K-12 populations so every student has equal opportunities? How do we ensure that no student falls through the cracks?

My family’s Mexican American heritage, which began in Kansas in 1917 and spanned the 1960s civil rights movements and beyond, highlights the evolution of diversity in K-12 and is evidence that accessible education is the key to getting out of poverty and reaching one’s full potential.

But in 2023, to make education accessible to diverse communities, we need to build trust with parents and increase parent involvement by celebrating and representing diversity in new and effective ways.

I want to share with you my experience as a fourth-generation Mexican American who has spent the last 25 years leveraging school communications to ensure every child has a fighting chance at reaching their full potential. 

My Family Heritage: The History of Mexican American Students in the U.S. Education System

A little more than two years ago, I had the privilege of interviewing my dad, Dennis R. Garcia, about growing up as a Mexican American in Kansas during the 1950s. My great-grandfather, Jose, emigrated to Holcomb, Kansas as a railroad worker in 1917. But when he was injured about eight years later, he became a migrant field worker who harvested sugar beets to provide for his wife and six sons. 

As you can imagine, that type of hard labor resulted in a work ethic that trickled down to my dad and my aunts and uncles, and eventually to my generation. But more than that, it made my father and his siblings crave the freedom that a good education could afford them. Education was the golden ticket that would lift him and his family out of poverty and allow us, his children and later  grandchildren, to live comfortably and give back to our communities. 

Back in the 1950s, the Kansas Mexican American population was sparse and mostly consisted of barrios that followed the path of the railroad. The public schools were host to white and Latino communities alike, although there was an evident socioeconomic divide. The majority of students being white, Mexican heritage wasn’t celebrated or understood. 

While other larger communities across the US were seeing civil rights protests, Kansas fell behind. My father, his siblings and his cousins integrated into white society, leaving their culture at home and speaking less Spanish every day. Some dropped out of school to pursue other interests or to look for work that would help bolster their family’s low income. But my father and his siblings went on to college, moved into public service, some traveled the world. 

They went on to have very successful careers. My dad’s cousin even became the first Hispanic sergeant at arms for the United States Senate and had the opportunity to escort President Reagan to the senate chambers for his State of the Union address and to escort the president of Mexico on his visit to Congress. 

But the fight for diversity and inclusion wasn’t nearly over yet. 

Communicating with Diverse K-12 Populations in 2023

I’ve spent the majority of my career directing K-12 communications in the state of Texas where diversity is the norm. Helping a wide array of schools become more inclusive and accommodating through revamping or building their communications strategy from scratch.  

My guiding purpose has always been to use communications as a means of building trust between the school and parents. We want parents to trust us like they trust their faith-based leaders and doctors. Why? Because when we earn their trust, we can partner with them to ensure their children are supported, well-represented, and given every opportunity to reach their full potential. 

We know that “students achieve more in school when their parents are involved in their education,”but getting parents involved in diverse communities can be difficult. 

Immigrant families have a hard time trusting authority, especially if they are undocumented. They don’t come to our schools to engage because they don’t trust people in authority.

What can we do to make them more comfortable? We make sure that staff are communicating using good customer service principles. We make sure that parents understand their rights and that they know who to contact when they have questions or concerns. 

Translation technology like Weglot can be used to make websites and other content accessible and multilingual for non-English-speaking parents.  

Celebrating Culture to Build Trust in Diverse K-12 Communities 

In June of 2022, the GAO wrote, “It is widely recognized that a history of discriminatory practices has contributed to inequities in education, intertwined with disparities in wealth, income, and housing.”

There are endless resources, apps, and tools online that facilitate inclusion for your district. Diversity and inclusion toolkits are widely available through organizations such as the National School Public Relations Association. 

But truly understanding the communities we serve and honoring their differences is the best way to build trust and guard against discrimination. 

In a previous school district where I served, we opened a Newcomer center for students coming in from different countries. We hosted regular culture days and invited families to share their native food, desserts and attire. We even held fashion shows to celebrate cultural diversity.

It was a good way to get to know the parents, earn their trust, and show them that we were excited about them becoming part of our community. 

The result of our efforts was this: When we had to go to them with issues of financial aid documents, or when they were concerned about identity, we already had a history of including them in our activities on the campuses.

Sharing who we are and what makes us unique in our cultures is a great way to demonstrate that we value every student no matter where they come from. 

Conclusion

When my dad left Kansas to attend college in Albuquerque, New Mexico, he experienced a culture shock unlike anything he could have imagined. The streets had Spanish names. There were Spanish-speaking radio stations. He found representation in Mexican American senators and congressmen along with his college professors. He saw hundreds of Mexican restaurants in contrast to the one or two that existed in his Kansas hometown, one of which was owned and run by my mother’s family, his future in-laws.

The inclusivity that abounded in New Mexico opened his eyes to a world where "minority" was just a label. His Mexican-American heritage didn’t have to limit his achievements in any way. 

His experience, and mine too, serve as evidence that when we strive to celebrate the cultures of our students and parents they feel understood and represented. We gain their trust and remove the barriers that hold them back from achieving their full potential.

Education is the great equalizer. Let’s keep using it to do just that. 

Interested in having me work with your school team? Send me an email at veronica@veronicavsopher.com to talk about my in-person customer service training and leadership retreats.