Dear Parents/Guardians:

I want you to know that I am personally committed, along with the entire PCSD
administration, faculty and Board of Education, to eliminating all forms of racism and
hatred toward any individual or group. I am so proud of the students who had the
courage to stand up and share their personal stories at the recent Board of Education
meeting. The Board of Education and I are committed to hearing your voices and
student voices and creating the kind of change that will be impactful, meaningful and
lasting.

In September of this year, the Board of Education and I created an Inclusivity Advisory
Committee; a committee comprised of experts in all areas related to full inclusion. To
learn more about the members of this committee, here’s a link to their video
profiles: https://www.pittsfordschools.org/site/Default.aspx?PageID=22444.

With racism as a primary focus of the Inclusivity Advisory Committee’s current work,
PCSD is taking the following actions:

Inclusivity Event on Racism on Thursday, May 2: Pittsford Central School

District and the Town of Pittsford will host an inclusivity event on racism facilitated by
Partners in Restorative Initiatives (PIRI). The event is from 6:30-8:30 pm at Calkins
Road Middle School, in the Commons.

While this is an inclusivity event on racism, we are planning other events over the next
school year to address full inclusivity. More details will follow as they become available.

NYSED Audit: I have invited the NYS Education Department’s Center for School
Safety to conduct an audit of PCSD’s Dignity for All Students Act (DASA) process,
culture and climate in our schools, and District policies. Results of the audit will be
shared with the community once it is completed.

Zero tolerance for racism and the use of the “n word”: PCSD is committed to
eliminating all forms of racism and hatred toward any individual or group. There is a lot
of misinformation circulating in the community about our handling of these issues.
While the District is legally prohibited from discussing consequences for specific
incidents, please be assured that all reports are taken seriously, dealt with swiftly, and
appropriate consequences are applied. There are no exceptions. For information about
checking facts on this past week’s events, please visit our Fact Checker at
www.pittsfordschools.org/factchecker.

Rewriting of Student Code of Conduct: During this school year, the Student Code
of Conduct has been under review and is being rewritten to be more explicit in the areas
of race. I am meeting with students on the Superintendent’s Student Advisory
Committee in early May for their review and input on proposed changes. After their
input has been received and proposed changes to the Codes of Conduct have been
completed, the revised Code of Conduct will go to the Board of Education for review and
approval.
Summer 2019 Professional Development: There will be several professional
development workshops again this summer for teachers and staff on the topics of
racism, hidden biases, inclusivity, diversity and school safety, and restorative practices.
Among the workshops planned to date, some of the topics include “Advancing Racial
Justice,” “Let’s Talk About Hate,” “Racism and Poverty,” “Hidden Biases,” and “Safe and
Inclusive Schools.”

I encourage you and your family to join us for the inclusivity event on racism happening
on Thursday, May 2 at Calkins Road Middle School at 6:30pm.

To learn more about the inclusivity efforts we’ve been working on over the past few
years, please visit our website at www.pittsfordschools.org/inclusivity.

I hope to see you Thursday night.

Sincerely,

Michael Pero
Superintendent of Schools