Hastings board narrows Diversity & Inclusion coordinator work plan; members debate teacher‑on‑assignment vs. director role

The Hastings-on-Hudson Board of Education discussed a new, more instructional‑centered work plan on March 19 for the district's Diversity & Inclusion coordinator, a teacher‑on‑assignment position. Superintendent framed the proposal as a yearlong effort to embed cultural competence across K–12 curriculum with co‑planning, coaching and district‑wide professional learning.

The plan directs the coordinator to work closely with building principals and instructional leaders to support targeted lessons, embedded coaching and curricular review. As described in the publicly posted memo, the role will also have a consultative involvement in DASA (anti‑harassment) incidents to ensure subject‑matter expertise is available for handling sensitive disciplinary situations.

Board members sought clearer operational detail. One trustee asked how the new plan differs from prior practice and whether principals would be more involved; another said the community wants clarity on what will be done differently and requested examples of the coordinator's day‑to‑day work. The superintendent said the job description is not changing contractually but that the work plan tightens the role's focus on curricular instruction and coaching and is explicitly tied to DASA protocols. "This is a living work plan, and it will evolve as we move forward," he said.

Some trustees raised the longer‑term question of whether the role should become an administrative director rather than a teacher‑on‑assignment, noting that districts vary in structure. The superintendent and administrators said many districts favor a coaching model rather than a single administrator in charge because sustainable change typically requires distributed leadership among teachers and building leaders. They committed to a midyear review to assess whether an administrative classification would be warranted based on outcomes and operational needs.

Why it matters: the work plan determines how the district trains teachers, supports culturally responsive curriculum, and responds to incidents involving protected classes. Trustees emphasized that the role should be rooted in data, aligned to the district’s Portrait of a Hastings Learner, and coupled with measurable assessment of progress.

Next steps: administration will move forward with the narrower, K–12 instructional work plan for the coming year, return with implementation details and a midyear assessment, and continue collaboration with building principals and teacher leaders to ensure the plan aligns with classroom practice.