The Antioch Unified School District agreed last week to move forward with a Culture and Climate Assessment. The contract is not to exceed $200k and was approved in a 4-0 vote.
According to AUSD, the purpose of the Culture and Climate Assessment is to provide actionable insights that strengthen the district’s ability to serve all students, families, and staff. The contract with USC Rossier School of Education will provide robust and actionable work in the Entry Plan priority areas and Board Goals by:
- Using systematic, district-wide surveys and focus groups to capture representative voices from students, families, staff, and community members, supporting the Superintendent’s commitment to transparency, listening tours, and family engagement.
- Providing actionable short- and long-term recommendations tied directly to district priorities such as academic excellence, student safety, and inclusive decision-making.
- Embedding findings into district processes that connect results to board goals.
During the meeting, Pedtro Noguera, Emery Stoops and Joyce King Stoops Dean, at USC Rossier School of Education, explained they had been doing this work with many districts around the country and he had been doing this work several years with a focus of ensuring all students no matter their backgrounds have the opportunity to learn.
“What the work focuses on is identifying and working with district leaders on eliminating barriers,” explained Noguera. “The simple idea is if you can eliminate the barriers, all kids are in a position to learn and hopefully to thrive. We know that their academic learning is how well they feel connected to their peers, their teachers, how much support they are receiving. So what we will be doing through the climate study is identifying those barriers and then working with the district leadership on how to address those.”
He also credited Antioch Unified with hiring Superintendent Dr. Darnise R. Williams, who is a graduate of USC, noting he worked closely with her while she was in Los Angeles (see story below from 2020) and called her a “capable leader”. He wanted to ensure that all students have their needs met which was the work they would be seeking data on.
Dr. John Pascarella, professor at US Rossier School of Education, who is also the Chief Academic Officer, USC Race and Equity Center, said the goal was to increase learning opportunities in school districts within underserved communities – which he says the work will provide data that will offer concrete recommendations focusing on specific inequities.
He highlighted some of the issues they found in the past were when a district though they were addressing equity through communications/transparency, discipline, school counseling, while believing they were increasing the learning experience for students that they were in fact undermining with the decisions being made.
“Other issues were navigating some sensitive issues for community members to inform what was coming up, what was getting in the way addressing the issues that were causing exclusion,” explained Pascarella. “What programs were being funded and why? How was that diverting funding away from programs, efforts, initiatives that would better serve students that have historically not had access to the kinds of services and education needs that they otherwise would have if those funding decisions had changed.”
He also added, the climate studies was an effort for them to come in and systematically get to know and understand the dynamics playing out. By collecting the data it will help them create a roadmap to addressing issues.
According to the 8-page proposal:
“Over the course of the 2025-27 school years (e.g., November 2026 – June 2027), USC Rossier School of Education staff will carry out a five-phase climate and culture assessment designed to support the district in advancing its entry plan goals and long-term priorities. This team will offer practical recommendations and tactical strategies or practices that can be deployed to aid the progress beyond each phase of the advising efforts.
Concrete deliverables will include a constituent summary report, a districtwide survey instrument, progress reports, a strategic roadmap, and implementation tools—equipping the district with clear, evidence-based guidance to strengthen governance, instructional excellence, student-centered decision making, and community trust.”
It continues with objectives:
During the 2025-26 and 2026-27 school years, USC Rossier School of Education experts will have supported Antioch Unified School District in accomplishing the following aims:
- Facilitating Inclusive Constituent Engagement by conducting structured listening sessions, surveys, and interviews with students, staff, families, and community members to surface key perspectives, concerns, and aspirations.
- Develop a District Roadmap by translating constituent insights and district data into a clear, actionable roadmap that highlights immediate priorities, early wins, and long term focus areas aligned with district goals.
- Provide Evidence-Based Progress Monitoring by delivering a mid-year progress report that evaluates implementation to date, identifies successes and barriers, and offers research-informed recommendations for refining district strategies.
- Strengthen Strategic Alignment and Implementation by reviewing academic, governance, and operational systems, and provide actionable strategies that ensure alignment with the district’s vision, mission, and entry plan goals.
- Synthesize Findings into Actionable Recommendations by producing a final report that consolidates evidence, captures systemwide progress, and offers prioritized recommendations with short-, medium-, and long-term implementation timelines.
- Build Sustainable Leadership and Community Trust by supporting district leaders in fostering transparent communication, shared ownership of goals, and ongoing collaboration across governance, schools, and the broader community.
By June 2027, USC Rossier staff will draft a comprehensive report including key findings and themes, current practices vs. aspirations, gaps and inequities, and actionable recommendations. Recommendations will include both short-term actions (policy adjustments, training, communication strategies) and long-term strategies (structural changes, resource allocation, inclusive practices). The report’s findings and recommendations will be presented to the school board and community stakeholders.
Trustee Mary Rocha questioned the $200k contract stating she felt like she heard this before and how it would work for Antioch—including money spent on the school audits, superintendent search. She also said they gathered surveys already from parents and how they feel about the district.
“I am a little bit concerned when we are talking about more money here and how this is going to be similar to what we have already had,” said Rocha. “Are they going to take what we have and put it into a plan or are they going to take a survey that we have already done?”
Superintendent Williams responded by stating this contract was not intended to recreate something that has already been done. But rather specific to the goals the school board has outlined and its priorities.
“Based on interviews with current staff, with our parents, with out students, those instruments are going to be designed to yield information on do students feel supported? Do students feel safe in terms of their instructional environment? We are not speaking about physical safety, we are speaking about support and access,” explained Williams. “We are looking at what barriers historically persist in our community and in our district that prevent our students from learning. That is a distinct different type of instrument and a distinct different type of research conversation.”
Williams also called it an investment.
Trustee Jag Lathan said she was excited about the partnership with the University and appreciated the thoughtfulness in the type of research and tools that will be created.
She called it important to use the data they gather, they need to be able to use it in the future or it’s another study that sits on a shelf collecting dust while adding when they did the equity audit, some schools are using it, other were not.
The board approved the item in a 4-0 vote with Trustee Dee Brown absent.
Note — the AUSD did not include the proposal in the agenda, it has since been added after a request for more information on the item. It can be reviewed by clicking here.
Other articles of interest
- March 2023 – USC Race and Equity Center seeks to ‘illuminate, disrupt and dismantle’ racism: Latino and African American students comprise 82% of the Los Angeles Unified School District’s population. In 2020, Harper partnered with LAUSD to create a Racial Equity Leadership Academy for principals and administrators in the nation’s second-largest school district. The Center’s chief academic officer, USC Rossier Professor of Clinical Education John Pascarella, designed and facilitated the ongoing project in coordination with the district’s Darnise Williams EdD ’09. Participants completing the program received an executive leadership certificate from USC Rossier.
- March 2020 – Los Angeles principals go all in on racial equity: “Principals have been wanting to have these conversations, but more importantly these specific conversations and actions they can take at their school,” says Darnise Williams EdD ’09, the district’s lead on the partnership. “They were having those hard conversations. They were admitting they don’t have the answer and they decided to work together, and that’s going to make them stronger leaders.”
