Increasing Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion for Students with Disabilities

Overview

Belongingness occurs at the intersection of equity, diversity, and inclusion. Healthy educational systems seek to ensure all students, including those with disabilities, enjoy this experience. Unfortunately, many years of Colorado and National data identify many inequities for these students. This website is designed to provide resources for school and district personnel to close opportunity gaps for youth with disabilities. Resources, training, opportunities to collaborate with others, and links to other sources of information regarding equity, diversity, and inclusion are available below.

Join The EDI CoP Listserv

The purpose of this Community of Practice is to facilitate connections, awareness, and access to information, learning opportunities, and resources that will improve the lives of students with disabilities and benefit the families, communities, and professionals who support them. Sharing of information is encouraged; however, it is at the discretion of the CDE what information will be posted. This service is chat-free and does not include advertisements from vendors or contract-based companies. To subscribe to the EDI CoP Listserv, please follow the directions below.

To subscribe to the EDI CoP listserv:

Open a new email.
In the “To” field, type the email and send the message__________
Once added, you will receive a confirmation email.
If you have a problem, email Michael Ramirez at ramirez_m@cde.state.co.us.

To unsubscribe from the EDI CoP listserv

Open a new email.
In the “To” field, type the email ________-
In the body of the message write, “unsubscribe CO-SLD” and send the message
You will automatically be unsubscribed.

Disclaimer: A variety of learning opportunities, information, and resources are provided on this listserv. These materials do not represent an exhaustive list, not are they required or endorsed by the Colorado Department of Education (CDE). The identification or description is to provide information and resources and does not constitute CDE's endorsement. Every effort has been made to identify the citation for the resource; please maintain the citation and/or authorship when adapting or modifying these materials.

What is a Community of Practice (CoP)?

Communities of practice are groups of people who share a concern or a passion for something they do and learn how to do it better as they interact regularly! It may include…

…Problem Solving - “Can we work on this design and brainstorm some ideas; I’m stuck.”

…Requests for information - “Where can I find the CDE Equity Toolkit?”

…Seeking experience - “Has anyone dealt with a parent in this situation?"

…Reusing assets - “I have a proposal for equity, diversity, and inclusion that I wrote for a school last year. I can send it to you, and you can easily tweak it for your setting.”

…Coordination and synergy - “Can we combine our resources to develop a culturally responsive program for our students with disabilities?”

…Discussing developments - “What do you think of the new approach to training staff? Does it really help?”

…Documentation projects - “We have replicated our EDI plan multiple times now. Let us write it down once and for all.”

…Visits - “Can we come and see your new social-emotional learning program? We need to establish one in our district/school.”

…Mapping knowledge and identifying gaps - “What are we missing? What other groups should we connect with?”

Training Opportunities

Advancing Equity for Students with Disabilities in Schools

This equity-focused community of practice (CoP) is designed to bring together people who share a passion for addressing the opportunity gaps experienced by students with disabilities. Education leaders committed to making meaningful systemic change and promoting equitable learning opportunities, will benefit from participating in this quarterly one-hour virtual meeting.

The kickoff meeting for the equity-focused CoP will take place on June 4, 2024, from 8:30-9:30 am, co-hosted by Dr. Bryn Harris, Professor, School of Education and Human Development & Department of Pediatrics (Developmental Pediatrics), University of Colorado Denver, and Dr. Michael Ramirez, Supervisor, Equity Projects Specialist, Exceptional Student Services at the Colorado Department of Education.

Dr. Ramirez will also host subsequent sessions on the following dates, all from 8:30-9:30 am:

September 10, 2024
November 12, 2024

February 11, 2025
May 13, 2025

Resources

CDE Resources

Other Resources

Western Educational Equity Assistance Center (WEEAC)

For more information, please contact:

Michael Ramirez
Equity Projects Specialist
Phone (720) 460-6251
Email Michael Ramirez

Having trouble with this webpage?

If you have problems with broken links or accessing the content on this page, please contact the Exceptional Student Services Unit at ESSU@cde.state.co.us. Please copy the URL link for this page into the email when referencing the problem you are experiencing.

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