2025 ACSA Equity Institute

This session is a partnership between Restorative Equity Partnership (REP) and Fresno Unified School District (FUSD)—a collaboration grounded in trust, accountability, and a shared commitment to transforming equity work from performative to truly impactful.

Through real, on-the-ground examples, this session highlights how theory, existing district initiatives, and action are braided together to drive research-based transformation. Participants explore how:

1. Honest acknowledgment of systemic shortcomings builds trust, validates lived experiences, and lays the foundation for meaningful action,

2. Foundational learning, like Cultural Proficiency Training, serves as a springboard for deeper, equity-centered work, and

3. Staff-driven learning—rooted in intentional framing, active listening, and actionable problem-solving—empowers educators to approach challenges with agency, creativity, and care.

This session engages participants through interactive discussions, reflective exercises, and collaborative problem-solving. Participants gain tools to:

1. Build psychological safety that fosters courageous, solution-focused equity conversations,

2. Leverage district priorities and initiatives as a foundation for sustainable change, and

3. Center care and creativity to create environments where both staff and students thrive.

When theory, action, and district commitments are braided together, equity work becomes more than an aspiration—it becomes a transformative force that creates real, lasting change. This session moves beyond acknowledgment to demonstrate how care, collaboration, and bold leadership drive equity into action.

Being able to navigate organizational and political barriers can be tough but is a necessary part
of actualizing our work and challenging chronic inequities. This workshop will explore tools for
the trade for women leaders:
● Traits of Equity Literate Leaders
● Being a well balance leader
● Crafting uplifting conversations
● Managing aggressors and antagonizers
● Building coalitions, and action steps that sustain change

Participants will receive concrete strategies that can be used immediately in their role as a
leader. How we do the work is just as important as the work we do. Being able to “Bloom Where
You Are Planted” takes tenacity and tangible tools that can be used to propel our leadership
work forward.

Join us for a transformative workshop where we delve into the essential layers of building a robust and successful Early Childhood Education (ECE) program. Drawing on the metaphor of crafting the perfect cake, this workshop introduces the 'Cake Study' approach to Universal PreKindergarten (UPK) implementation, featuring a detailed walkthrough of successful case studies from early implementers in small, mid-sized districts and a county office of education. You'll learn how to layer your program with the crucial elements of compliance, curriculum, professional development, and community engagement, all while ensuring equity remains the yeast that allows your program to rise above the rest.

 [Click Here] to view our interactive dashboard that will be presented. 

Student voice is a powerful driver for equitable change, yet it is often overlooked in decision-making processes. This session will explore how empathy interviews can be used as a transformative tool to amplify student experiences, identify systemic barriers, and drive meaningful change. Participants will engage in reflective discussions on best practices for conducting empathy interviews, explore strategies to create safe spaces for students to share openly, and develop actionable plans to integrate student voice into policies and practices. By centering the lived experiences of students, educators can foster a culture of belonging and equity that leads to student-centered solutions.