WRAPSC Email List Used for Superintendent's Doctoral Work
Meanwhile the Board would not allow its use to inform parents about School Board Bylaw changes.
In mid-May, WRDSB Trustee Cindy Watson asked that the Waterloo Region District School Board send a notice about the proposed Bylaw amendments to the Waterloo Region Assembly of Public School Councils (WRAPSC), to ensure parents knew about said changes, particularly to those impacting delegations. These amendments would affect how teachers, parents, and other citizens can voice their opinions to the Board. Watson's goal was to inform more parents and provide them with an opportunity to have their opinions acknowledged. In response, Scott Piatkowski said:
“it’s not going to be possible to contact WRAPSC, because they have already held their last meeting of the year…”
video clip from WRDSB Committee of the Whole held May 13, 2024
But wait... Then how could it be possible to receive an email from the WRAPSC administration on June 25, 2024, just days before the last day of school, with the following message: 👇
Dear WRAPSC Members:
Michelle Newlands, Superintendent of Achievement and Well-Being at Waterloo Region District School Board is a Doctoral student at Niagara University in Niagara Falls, New York and has asked Sara Heroux to share this survey on diversity experiences.
This study is part of coursework being undertaken by Michelle in partial fulfillment of the course Diversity in Organizations. The study is supervised by Dr. Polk and Dr. Marwaha of Niagara University, Niagara Falls, New York, USA, in the Leadership and Policy Studies Department.
The survey, known as The Reflective Diversity Inventory 2023 (RDI) is comprised of questions about your attitudes and previous and current experiences with diversity. The RDI survey questions are based on literature reviews of diversity perspectives initially articulated by Polka, Heaggans, and Menzie (2010). This 2023 survey instrument has been revised based on user input.
If you are interested in participating in Michelle’s study, please read the brief description below.
If you have any questions about the study, please CONTACT Michelle DIRECTLY at: 519-897-5616 or: michelle_newlands@wrdsb.ca You may also wish to contact someone who is not affiliated with the research. Please feel free to reach out to Julie Scott, (chair of the WRDSB Research Review Committee). Julie_scott@wrdsb.ca
Participation in this study is completely confidential. Michelle will not share with the WRDSB any information about who participated. Taking part or not taking part in this study will not affect your status or relationship with Michelle, WRAPSC, or the WRDSB.
Description of the Study:
You are invited to participate in the RDI survey that will take approximately 20 minutes to complete. The survey will be available from June 20 through July 15th, 2024. A one-time follow-up reminder will be sent on July 10th.
This small-scale research project aims to learn about people’s personal and professional attitudes based on their previous and current experiences related to diversity.
The RDI consists of 53 questions measured on a 4-point scale, and 5 short answer questions. The RDI is composed of four parts:
1. “Personal Attitudes”
2. “Personal Experiences”
3. “Reflective Responses
4. “Demographic Data”You are encouraged to complete all the questions. The more comprehensive your responses, the more meaningful your input will be in evaluating the status of individual diversity attitudes and experiences.
You can skip any questions you do not wish to answer.
For the full details of the study, please read the attached Letter of Information. You can access the survey by clicking on the following link: RDI Link
If you are interested in participating but need a paper copy, please contact Sara Heroux. Michelle would like to thank you in advance for your time and consideration.
If you have any questions, please contact:
Michelle Newlands Dr. Walter Polka
Michelle_newlands@wrdsb.ca wpolka@niagara.edu
1-519-897-5616 1-716-425-1860This study has been reviewed and received ethics clearance from Niagara University Internal Review Board (IRB) – Study#2023-068.
The research has been reviewed and approved by the WRDSB Research Review Committee.
Who approves of the messages that go through WRAPSC to all of the parents who are to serve as a bridge from the information from the board to each of our children’s schools?
Why was Trustee Cindy Watson’s request to have the proposed Bylaw amendments so quickly and confidently shut down with the explanation that it would be impossible to notify WRAPSC’s members? Could it be possible, that Scott Piatkowski had a lapse in recollecting the power of email lists? After all, isn’t Scott the very “veteran New Democrat organizer [who] wrongfully used email addresses collected by the NDP to solicit support and donations in his campaign for a [WRDSB] trustee seat”?
Why does a Superintendent’s Doctoral endeavors take precedence when accessing parents’ inboxes over proposed changes to School Board Bylaws?
Why is this propagated Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) agenda of higher priority than the liberties and voices of the people who fund these school boards?
We, parents of Waterloo Region, encourage you to fill out this survey. Let’s help Michelle Newlands gather some accurate information for her study. Perhaps she too will find these divisive initiatives have been draining our energy and funds from what ought to matter to our publicly funded schools: education.
My thoughts -- I'm very disappointed that any University REB would approve the attached survey questions as stated -- particularly since the criteria for research ethics approval must ensure the research is scientifically sound; the potential benefit for asking these questions significantly outweighs the potential for harm; that informed consent is clearly stated / prioritized / guaranteed; all pre-existing bias and discrimination, and any tendency toward predetermined outcomes are eliminated; and there is justice or fairness in the selection of participants. But herein, the author almost demands heightened priorities and actions as responses (as if the list of dictated priorities for organizations is already generated) and this survey is the tool to make it happen. Equally disappointing, the survey fails on confidentiality because not all the demographic questions include a 'not willing to disclose' option. Most of all, the author negates the value of life experiences in the embedded conclusions -- that growing as human beings is not just about learning information and how to engage in politically correct conversations in the workplace but includes understanding, insight, reflection, and ultimately wisdom that emanates from the culmination of numerous relationships including family, friends, schools and community ...