Puget Sound Transformational Collaborative
Our Story
The Puget Sound Transformational Collaborative (PSTC) launched in June 2020 in response to the dual pandemics of COVID-19 and the magnification of institutional racism. Hosted by the Puget Sound Educational Service District, and in partnership with PSESD's Community Wisdom Council (CWC), the collaborative convenes community, district, and educational leaders across King and Pierce counties to improve the wellbeing and educational experiences of Youth and Families of Color.
Challenge
The student population of King & Pierce Counties is 57% students of color while only 16% are Educators of Color (1). The wisdom, experiences, and dreams of our Communities of Color are underrepresented and historically underserved in our white-centered institutions.
Why It Matters
Our school boards, students, families and communities of color have named family-school partnerships as a top priority (2).
The pandemic has created an increased sense of urgency and possibility for family-school partnerships to transform classroom conditions and experiences for our region’s youth (3).
Our Journey
2020 – 2022
The collaborative built foundations to be inclusive, healthy, and sustainable. In partnership with our Community Wisdom Council (CWC) we identified four opportunity areas for supporting Youth, Families, and Educators of Color. Together we created a PSTC Playbook for supporting regional work in each area.
Click here to read the playbook!
2022 – 2023
We continued to grow our community and deepen our community-district partnerships as we center voices and leadership of communities, Youth and Families of Color.
2023 – 2024
The PSTC community is committed to being courageous trailblazers in the learning, modeling & championing of partnering with youth and families to center Communities of Color in district and regional decision-making.
Values and Goals
Our Why
Centering community and transforming ourselves. By partnering with youth and families that reflect our region, we can transform our systems to center the identities, wisdom, and aspirations of our Communities of Color. We also believe that in order to create authentic partnerships, we need to transform ourselves and the ways we show up to do this work.
Our How
The PSTC is a monthly meeting space in which we reflect, connect, learn, and act together in this work as ‘courageous trailblazers’ that design, implement, and adapt the personal, relational and community-building foundations for authentic partnership.
The Process is the Outcome
We have found that with a strong, diverse, and flourishing community, we are well-positioned to thought-partner with districts in support of their own youth, family, and community-centering processes and goals.
Seeing & Feeling Progress, Together
We all need to see and feel the changes emerging from our work together as both our mirror and our North Star. We are working together to co-design processes and measures of progress that center youth, family, and community.
Resources
Puget Sound Transformational Collaborative Design Team
Adam Kay
Director, Puget Sound Transformational Collaborative
akay@psesd.org
Brad Brown
Executive Director, Learning Teaching and Leadership Development
bbbrown@psesd.org
Eileen Yoshina
Director, Equity in Education
eyoshina@psesd.org
Érica Gonzalez Jones
Manager, Equity in Education
ejones@psesd.org
Jacquetta McGowen
Parent Advocate & RAC Leader
PSTC Co-Designer
Shereese Rhodes
Parent Advocate & Community Leader
SPEB Community & Family
Resiliency Lead
South King County Discipline
Coalition Coordinator
PSTC Co-Designer