The Response to Systematic Racism in our Schools
Ruby Gifford '21 Features Editor
On June 10, a 105-page petition titled “Addressing Racism in Howard County” was sent to the Howard County Board of Education. In light of the recent Black Lives Matter protests happening across the country, former HCPSS student Victoria Owens created this petition with specific demands to HCPSS regarding how to address racism in their schools.
The petition was signed by over 400 former and current students, parents, staff and faculty of HCPSS. It begins by outlining the county’s need for change in order to address how systemic racism has impacted student bodies, hiring processes and school communities.
The last 98 pages contain personal testaments of racism in Howard County from those who signed the petition. The accounts detail numerous instances of discrimination in high schools from students whose graduation years range from 1999 to 2023.
This petition attests to the exponential increase in youth activism that America has seen after March for Our Lives, Black Lives Matter and numerous climate crisis marches. Many protests are the result of the united efforts of many teenagers and young adults who felt compelled to take action. The largest protest ever organized in Howard County was the recent Black Lives Matter Protest on June 2, organized by Hoco For Justice: “a multicultural, youth collective in the Howard County area dedicated to the liberation and success of Black and Brown lives locally and nationally.”
Howard County is home to numerous youth advocacy groups, some led by former Howard County students and some led by students currently enrolled in Howard County schools. These groups advocate for social justice in their communities, representing their generation’s initiative to improve the world in which they live.
Camille Young, a sophomore at Long Reach High School, is part of one such organization, Youth In Conversation. She notes, “Our main goal is just teaching young people, especially Howard County students, how to have conversations and to promote diversity, inclusivity and equity within the county.”
Young believes there is a lot of room for progress in Howard County when it comes to appropriately addressing racism. “I do commend the county for being accountable and publicizing all these testimonies and having all the principals and teachers read what people have to say about these schools, but until HCPSS is making sure that everyone has to get these training and everyone has to take these certain courses, then that’s when real change really happens.”
So far, the county response to the petition has included reviewing staff and faculty training, as well as books and other texts assigned to the students in social studies and literature classes. In addition, more positions being created for the HCPSS Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. At Howard High, courses like African American Studies and Literature have been added to the 2020-2021 schedule.
All high schools are encouraging systemic change through faculty and staff training. Mr. Novak, the Howard High principal, elaborates, “As the county has developed their plan for this year, for staff it includes systemic professional learning on topics such as racial equity, implicit bias, restorative justice microaggressions - these kinds of topics.”
Dr. Martirano, the Howard County Superintendent, responded to the petition in his Juneteenth Recognition message on June 19: “We have reached out to young people who are leading a powerful movement for change in Howard County. I look forward to their continued engagement in helping HCPSS take on these very necessary reforms, because we recognize that this work depends on the commitment and participation of every member of our school system community...We must address racism at every level, because tackling racism will make our entire school system better for all of our students.”
“There are a lot of student groups that popped up this year. I think that’s fantastic,” Mr. Novak says. “In October, November, things will really ramp up with opportunities for students to connect and make plans and really put things out there as far as actionable items to address racism and work to make sure that our school is anti-racist.”
For any students wanting to advocate for social justice, Camille Young highly recommends joining groups at your school or in your county: “I like to say that we’re doing meaningful change in the simplest way. We’re learning how to have conversations because communication is key and that’s how we get things started. There’s so much opportunity for us to create real change.”
The petition was signed by over 400 former and current students, parents, staff and faculty of HCPSS. It begins by outlining the county’s need for change in order to address how systemic racism has impacted student bodies, hiring processes and school communities.
The last 98 pages contain personal testaments of racism in Howard County from those who signed the petition. The accounts detail numerous instances of discrimination in high schools from students whose graduation years range from 1999 to 2023.
This petition attests to the exponential increase in youth activism that America has seen after March for Our Lives, Black Lives Matter and numerous climate crisis marches. Many protests are the result of the united efforts of many teenagers and young adults who felt compelled to take action. The largest protest ever organized in Howard County was the recent Black Lives Matter Protest on June 2, organized by Hoco For Justice: “a multicultural, youth collective in the Howard County area dedicated to the liberation and success of Black and Brown lives locally and nationally.”
Howard County is home to numerous youth advocacy groups, some led by former Howard County students and some led by students currently enrolled in Howard County schools. These groups advocate for social justice in their communities, representing their generation’s initiative to improve the world in which they live.
Camille Young, a sophomore at Long Reach High School, is part of one such organization, Youth In Conversation. She notes, “Our main goal is just teaching young people, especially Howard County students, how to have conversations and to promote diversity, inclusivity and equity within the county.”
Young believes there is a lot of room for progress in Howard County when it comes to appropriately addressing racism. “I do commend the county for being accountable and publicizing all these testimonies and having all the principals and teachers read what people have to say about these schools, but until HCPSS is making sure that everyone has to get these training and everyone has to take these certain courses, then that’s when real change really happens.”
So far, the county response to the petition has included reviewing staff and faculty training, as well as books and other texts assigned to the students in social studies and literature classes. In addition, more positions being created for the HCPSS Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. At Howard High, courses like African American Studies and Literature have been added to the 2020-2021 schedule.
All high schools are encouraging systemic change through faculty and staff training. Mr. Novak, the Howard High principal, elaborates, “As the county has developed their plan for this year, for staff it includes systemic professional learning on topics such as racial equity, implicit bias, restorative justice microaggressions - these kinds of topics.”
Dr. Martirano, the Howard County Superintendent, responded to the petition in his Juneteenth Recognition message on June 19: “We have reached out to young people who are leading a powerful movement for change in Howard County. I look forward to their continued engagement in helping HCPSS take on these very necessary reforms, because we recognize that this work depends on the commitment and participation of every member of our school system community...We must address racism at every level, because tackling racism will make our entire school system better for all of our students.”
“There are a lot of student groups that popped up this year. I think that’s fantastic,” Mr. Novak says. “In October, November, things will really ramp up with opportunities for students to connect and make plans and really put things out there as far as actionable items to address racism and work to make sure that our school is anti-racist.”
For any students wanting to advocate for social justice, Camille Young highly recommends joining groups at your school or in your county: “I like to say that we’re doing meaningful change in the simplest way. We’re learning how to have conversations because communication is key and that’s how we get things started. There’s so much opportunity for us to create real change.”